Deadline: 20 December 2019

The U.S. Embassy Port Moresby and the Cultural Heritage Center of the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Department of State have announced the call for proposals for the 2020 Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) Small Grants Competition.

AFCP was established to support countries in preserving their cultural heritage and to demonstrate U.S. respect for other cultures. The projects selected to receive funding under this program will advance U.S. diplomatic goals and demonstrate the depth of U.S. respect for the cultural heritage of developing countries. The AFCP provides funding to preserve cultural sites or objects that have a historical or cultural significance to the cultural heritage of Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Of particular interest are projects that support risk reduction and disaster preparedness for cultural sites and collections in seismically-active and other disaster- prone areas as well as projects that empower women, youth or under-served communities.

Funding Information

• Floor on Amount of Individual Awards: US $10,000 per project
• Ceiling on Amount of Individual Awards: $200,000 per project

Focus Areas

Through the AFCP Program, the Department of State supports projects to preserve cultural heritage in the following three areas:

• CULTURAL SITES: such as, but not limited to, historic buildings and archaeological sites;
• CULTURAL OBJECTS AND COLLECTIONS: from a museum, site, or similar institution—that includes, but are not limited to, archaeological and ethnographic objects, paintings, sculpture, manuscripts, and general museum conservation needs; and,
• FORMS OF TRADITIONAL CULTURAL EXPRESSION: such as traditional music, indigenous languages, and crafts.

Priorities

Special priorities of 2020 competition:

• Directly support U.S. treaty or bilateral agreement obligations, such as cultural property protection agreements;
• Support the preservation of inscribed UNESCO World Heritage sites;
• Support disaster risk reduction for cultural heritage and post-disaster cultural heritage recovery in seismically active and other disaster-prone areas; and
• Engage women, youth, or under-served communities.

Eligibility Criteria

The Center defines eligible project applicants as reputable and accountable non-commercial entities, such as non-governmental organizations, museums, ministries of culture, or similar institutions and organizations that are able to demonstrate that they have the requisite experience and capacity to manage projects to preserve cultural heritage.

For more information, visit https://pg.usembassy.gov/u-s-ambassadors-fund-for-cultural-preservation-2020-small-grants-application-guide/