STATUS Update June 1, 2025: The Embassy Sofia Small Grants Program is accepting proposals for Financial Year 2025. Proposals will be reviewed when funding is available. As such, you may not hear back from us immediately. Projects that start before September are unlikely to be reviewed in time. Please submit proposals no later than July 25th. All projects will be reviewed by August 22 with responses going out no later than August 29, 2025.

The U.S. Embassy Sofia Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) of the U.S. Department of State is pleased to announce that funding is available through its Public Diplomacy Small Grants Program. This is an Annual Program Statement, outlining our funding priorities, the strategic themes we focus on, and the procedures for submitting requests for funding. Please carefully follow all instructions below.

Small Grants Program Goals and Objectives: PDS Sofia invites proposals for programs that align with U.S. administration objectives to make the U.S. safer, stronger, and more prosperous and comply with all Executive Orders. All programs must include a U.S. element, or clear connection with American expert/s, organization/s, or institution/s in a specific field that will promote these priorities.

Priority Program Areas: Competitive proposals should focus on one or more of the following areas:

·        Programs showcasing American leadership and innovation—teaching U.S. best practices/achievements in entrepreneurship, financial literacy, science, technology, energy, and cybersecurity to secondary and university students, especially from regions outside major cities.

·        Programs that celebrate American culture, scientific advances, and innovation ahead of America’s 250th anniversary.

·        Programs that increase English language proficiency, unlocking economic opportunities, increasing understanding of U.S. policy priorities, and establishing an environment for even stronger future cooperation.

·        Programs that build active, sustainable networks of alumni from U.S. exchange programs or U.S. educational institutions who understand U.S. and Bulgarian shared priorities and advocate for them within their local communities.

·        Programs that forge partnerships between U.S. and Bulgarian educational, cultural, or civic society organizations/institutions, including the development of joint- degree programs, internships, trainings or exchanges, in strategic areas like energy security/cooperation, cybersecurity, biotechnology, AI, etc.

·        Programs that foster closer people-to-people ties between Bulgarians and other U.S. allies/neighbors in the region—increasing trust and promoting regional economic and security self-sufficiency.

·        Programs that increase interest in and opportunities for Bulgarians to study in the United States and Americans to study in Bulgaria.

·        Programs that promote the protection of intellectual property (IP) rights, enabling an environment for creative innovation and incentivizing new investments.

·        Programs that ensure accurate local media coverage of U.S. priorities/policies to audiences most susceptible to foreign propaganda; or programs that increase awareness of foreign actors’ efforts to undermine U.S. interests.

Deadlines and Funding Decisions: Proposals will be evaluated on a rolling basis based on the availability of funds. However, the final deadline for FY 25 proposals will be 5:00 p.m. Sofia time on July 25, 2025. We recommend submitting proposals when ready and not waiting until the July 25 deadline as funding may be depleted by then. No exceptions will be given for late or incomplete proposals. Note: see Submission Dates and Times in Part D below for more specific information.

Whenever possible, applicants should submit proposals for projects at least 2-3 months prior to anticipated program start dates. PDS Sofia is generally unable to approve/fund proposals that are submitted last minute and are slated to begin 1-1.5 months after they are submitted.

Please carefully review the full text of the Annual Program Statement in the Related Documents section.

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