Keepers of the Earth Fund (KOEF) Call for Project Concepts 2018

Deadline: August 31, 2018

Cultural Survival invites Project Concepts for the Keepers of the Earth Fund (KOEF). The KOEF is a small grant fund that supports Indigenous values-based community development. These grants have supported Indigenous-led projects on the leading edge of the most pressing issues for Indigenous Peoples everywhere.

The primary purpose of the Keepers of the Earth Fund is to empower grassroots Indigenous communities in establishing their rights and retaining their traditional values. They seek to fund projects that work in collaboration with others for the larger community as opposed to working alone. They encourage partnerships and networking, capacity building for results, and strategic approaches to Indigenous development.

Grant

Through the KOEF, Cultural Survival intends to provide grants ranging between $ 500 and $ 5,000 to Indigenous-led and -controlled organizations and groups around the world.

Grants can support projects focused on a vast array of development activities. Applications will be viewed with an eye towards innovation, Indigenous values ​​woven into the design of the project, and addressing real-time development needs. The connection between Indigenous values ​​and the proposed project should be clearly articulated.

Eligibility

• Be an Indigenous organization, grassroots group, or a traditional Indigenous government.
• Be Indigenous-led
• Have an annual organizational budget of less than $150,000USD / year
• Have a bank account in the name of your organization or have an existing written agreement with a fiscal sponsor. (For Indigenous governments, please contact us to discuss.)

KOEF supports emerging and grassroots Indigenous-led development projects and is often the first funding source for Indigenous organizations and projects. Grant amounts will  range between $500 and $5,000 USD. KOEF is intended to be a springboard to enable start-up activities that can lead to sustainability. Upon successful completion of your initial grant and reporting, you may apply for subsequent grants of up to US$10,000. We will consider funding an organization a maximum of three times when there is evidence of progressive growth toward self-sufficiency and if you have secured additional sources of funding other than from Cultural Survival.

Application

They accept project concepts in written, video, or audio formats in English, Spanish, Didxazá, K’iche, Sunuwar, Hindi, Nepali, or Russian.  Please limit submissions to 2-pages written or three-minutes of audio or video. The project concept should respond to all the questions listed in the project concept Format.

Submit by email at koef@cs.org.

For more information, visit KOEF.