Round 1 - Connecting the dots at FfD4: Linking economic, gender and climate justice in the lead up to the 4th Financing for Development (FfD4) Conference

Background

“Connecting the Dots” is a four-year project funded by the EU DEAR programme, focused on educating and empowering EU citizens, in particular young activists, to tackle global challenges through the interconnected lenses of economic, gender and climate justice. The project promotes knowledge-building and the creation of tools, and spaces for capacity building, networking, campaigning and advocacy. It engages media, educators, and decision-makers to amplify narratives and drive systemic change by connecting local and international efforts. A key element of the project will be three major joint pan-European campaigns focused on economic justice and financing for development (in 2025), climate justice and gender justice. 

This project is implemented by a consortium of nine diverse and experienced partner organisations from across the EU. The consortium includes both national member-based organisations and national organisations with strong connections to local and international networks. Collectively, these organisations bring extensive expertise in areas such as debt, tax, gender, environmental and climate justice, financing for development, and development cooperation. The partners are as follows:

• ACEP (Portugal)
• CCFD (France)
• CNCD-11.11.11 (Belgium)
• erlassjahr.de (Germany)
• Financial Justice Ireland (FJI) (Ireland)
• Observatori del Deute en la Globalització (ODG) (Spain)
• Reflex (Hungary)
• Za Zemiata (Bulgaria)
• Eurodad (Pan-European) – the lead partner

Through the sub grants under this call, the action aims to support a wider set of local organisations, grassroots movements and youth groups to meet their capacity building needs, strengthen awareness raising, mobilisation and advocacy strategies, and foster coordination amongst civil society organisations and activist multipliers, aligned with the objectives and thematic priorities of the “Connecting the Dots” project. Activist multipliers refers to those who will directly benefit from the knowledge-sharing tools and capacity-building actions, and will amplify the key messages and mobilisation opportunities of the action, bringing higher visibility to the project activities, and extending outreach to a wider group of young and adult EU citizens.

The project will open two calls for proposals for organisations keen on implementing initiatives that contribute to the project’s objectives. Following this specific call focused on the FfD4 conference (see objectives below), the project partners will open a second broader call for proposals in 2025 for other actions on economic justice, gender justice and climate justice.

Objectives of the Call

The UN Financing for Development Conference (FfD4) set to take place in Sevilla, Spain, in July 2025, represents a unique, once-in-a-decade opportunity for civil society advocates to push for reforms to the global financial system under the auspices of the United Nations (UN). Notably, this will be the first FfD conference hosted on European soil. 

In the lead-up to this pivotal event, the action aims to bring together a wide cross-cutting network of local CSOs, grassroots movements, activists, young people and other EU citizens to influence a decisive moment that will shape the future of the global financial and economic systems, and steer future policies for financing development. To this end, the project partners will be organising a major joint pan-European campaign in 2025, led by Eurodad. Together with the diverse stakeholders involved in the action, including future sub-grantees, we aim through this campaign to contribute to the FfD conference, successfully delivering on bold reforms to realign the international financial architecture with human rights, economic, climate and gender justice.

This call for grant applications is linked to the overall aim of promoting climate, gender and economic justice in an integrated manner, and specifically targets groups engaged in activities related to the FfD4 process and those that are interested and equipped to become actively engaged for the first time. This includes organising awareness-raising campaigns, building coalitions with other stakeholders, advocacy to influence decision-makers, participating in consultative processes, and monitoring the implementation of government commitments. By targeting CSOs and groups engaged in these activities, we aim to amplify diverse perspectives and ensure meaningful contributions to the development of equitable financing policies.

Types of Activities Eligible for Support:

• Production and dissemination of knowledge sharing and education materials, including toolkits, briefings, factsheets, articles, podcasts, infographics, audiovisual and other campaign materials. 
• Capacity building activities, including webinars, seminars and workshops to disseminate knowledge, exchange best practices and improve campaigning and advocacy strategies and skills. 
• Networking and coalition building with other European and global south civil society organisations, particularly youth groups and grassroots movements, prioritising those networks that break the silos between economic justice, climate justice and gender justice movements. 
• Public awareness raising activities, including local campaigns and mobilisation.
• Partnerships with media agents (incl. journalists, journalism students and social media influencers).
• Facilitating EU young and adult citizens’ engagement in the broader project’s joint pan-European campaigns. 
• Organising local advocacy actions and participating in joint European and international advocacy. 

Proposed activities must contribute to the overall project’s focus on economic, gender and climate justice as interconnected solutions that contribute to sustainable development and tackle global challenges – global, social, economic and gender inequalities, climate change and environmental destruction.

Grant Details

• We expect the size of proposed budgets to be appropriate and proportionate to the proposed activities, size and track record of the applicant. 
• Applicants may submit proposals for one of the following-categories of sub-grants:
  • Macro grant: €40,000-€60,000, up to 24 months duration, including at least 3 types of activities from the eligible list above and the commitment to participate in the joint pan-European Campaign in the lead up to FfD4.
  • Meso grant: €20,000-€35,000, up to 18 months duration, including at least 2 types of activities from the eligible list and the commitment to participate in the joint FfD4 campaign.
  • Micro grant: €4,000-€15,000, up to 12 months duration, and for specific actions or a series of activities within one type (ex. a series of workshops or awareness raising actions)
• The total budget requested must include a minimum of 10% co-funding to be provided as a contribution by the applicant from other sources (excluding other EU institution sources).
• Proposed projects should start no earlier than 20 December 2024. 
• Each organisation can only receive one grant under the ‘Connecting the Dots’ project. Successful applicants of this round will not be eligible to participate in the 2nd Round call for proposals in 2025.

Eligibility Criteria to Receive Support:

• Be a legally established CSO or be allied with a legally established organisation or platform and be non-profit making. The action will prioritise sub-granting to youth groups, student groups, local CSOs and grassroots movements, particularly with youth leadership and constituencies. 
• Be established in a Member State of the EU or candidate country. 
• Not be a beneficiary of a grant under current DEAR calls for proposals (under any lot and either being lead, co-applicant or affiliated entity). 
• Have experience of at least 1 year and be active in economic justice, climate justice, environmental justice, gender justice, social justice, migrant solidarity, human rights or related causes.
• Have the capacity to successfully carry out the activities to be financed but did not have the financial, administrative or operational capacity to compete for funding directly from DEAR. 
• Be willing to actively participate in, benefit from and contribute to capacity building activities programmed under the broader project. 
• Commit to deliver project activities in a cost-effective way, and report on them in a timely fashion as per the deadlines and methods provided and according to EU requirements. 

How to Apply

To apply, please complete the following (attached) forms and submit them to [email protected] no later than 10 December 2024, 23:59 CET:

• Application form (word template)
• Budget template (excel template)

Applications should be submitted in English. 

Questions about the application process or requirements of this call may be submitted to [email protected], no later than 25 November 2024, 17:00 CET. Answers that are relevant for all applicants will be published here no later than 27 November 2024, 17:00 CET.

Selection Process

The project partners will establish a selection committee responsible for evaluating all applications. The committee will confirm compliance with the eligibility criteria outlined above, and applications will be scored against the following selection criteria:

• Will the proposed project help us achieve the broader project’s objective and expected outputs? (0 to 5)
• Is there a good thematic fit? (0 to 5)
• Does the project include activities from an appropriate selection of the eligible activity categories (in line with the size of the proposed budget)? (0 to 5) 
• Does the project look realistic in terms of deliverables, budget and timescales? (0 to 5)
• Does the expected reach (e.g., number of people targeted) seem realistic? (0 to 5)
• Does the applicant seem open to and interested in working with others/building partnerships/strengthening the CSO movement across Europe? (0 to 5)
• Is the applicant open to participating in or contributing to the capacity building programme? (0 to 5)
• Other added value? (0 to 3)
• Preference will be given to organisations with activities targeting the following countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Croatia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Serbia and Slovenia. But this list is not exclusive, and organisations targeting other EU and candidate EU countries are also welcome to apply. (0 to 1)

Applicants will be notified of the committee's decision regarding their applications—both successful and unsuccessful—by no later than 31 December 2024. Following this, successful applicants may be invited to refine their proposals based on the committee’s feedback. This collaborative process will ensure that the final proposals align with the project's objectives before a grant contract is finalised and signed.

Obligations of selected sub-grantees

Selected organisations must commit to participating in relevant capacity building activities provided under the broader project and coordination meetings with partners in the project. For macro and meso grants, selected organisations are also required to participate in the Eurodad-led joint pan-European Campaign in the lead up to FfD4 and to participate in Eurodad’s International Conference, taking place in Barcelona 28-29 January, 2025. (Costs for the latter must be incorporated into the proposed budget.)