Bringing change in turbulent times: A call for applications for LGBTI groups in Poland

What is this programme about and why are we launching it?

ILGA-Europe invites applications from LGBTI organisations and groups in Poland that see a concrete opportunity to propel their agendas and the work of the LGBTI movement in the country, and have a clear practical idea how to seize this opportunity but have been lacking dedicated resources and support to take action.

LGBTI rights and the situation of the LGBTI movement and community in Poland have been a matter of concern in recent times. The rise of anti-LGBTI forces and growing anti-democratic sentiments have created a climate of conflict and uncertainty, with a significant impact on the state of LGBTI rights and organising in Europe and Central Asia. The ongoing war in Ukraine has further complicated the situation, posing new challenges and threats to the LGBTI community in the region.

We believe that even in the most difficult contexts, there are still opportunities to make positive change – only that change might look different. For example, maybe you identified and established communication with someone involved with your local authorities but you lack dedicated resources to pursue this further; maybe a recent or upcoming event creates an opportunity to mobilise allies or join forces with other movements; or perhaps there is momentum in the community that can be seized to implement a solid strategy to grow the movement.

With this programme, we hope to give organisations the tools and support they need to seize the windows of opportunity they see and to pursue their goals effectively.

We will bring together six LGBTI organisations and groups in Poland with focused, opportunity-based change projects over a period of 18 months and will support their work through a combination of project funding, coordination and learning.

This call for applications is part of a bigger programme that ILGA-Europe launched earlier this year. This programme aims to support and lift up the work of LGBTI organisations that pursue change in hostile and/or rapidly changing environments and focuses on six countries in Central and Eastern Europe, including Poland.

It builds up on the long-term commitment and work of ILGA-Europe to support the parts of our movement operating in high-risk and challenging contexts. Where relevant, we will support connections, mutual support and learning between partner organisations across different countries participating in this programme.

We expect that the strategies and tactics explored by partners in this programme will in the future support and inform the work of the wider LGBTI movement in Europe and Central Asia in navigating challenging and high-risk environments while staying true to our missions.

What is the aim of the programme?

The programme is aimed at:

• Enabling focused, concrete and practical change initiatives that will advance the LGBTI equality agenda and movement in Poland
• Strengthening connections and mutual support and learning between LGBTI organisations working in high-risk, challenging or rapidly changing contexts

What does the programme entail?

The programme includes:

• Funding to LGBTI organisations in Poland based on an opportunity funding framework: we expect to make six grants to LGBTI organisations of 18,000 Euro each for a duration of 18 months in the fixed period of 1 September, 2023 – 28 February, 2025
• Learning, coordination and other capacity development activities to support partner organisations in pursuing their goals
• Sub-regional and regional experience sharing to amplify relevant experiences across the wider movement and to facilitate mutual support, where relevant

Who is this programme for?

This programme is for any LGBTI group or organisation in Poland that:

• Is connected to the LGBTI community and the rest of the LGBTI movement in Poland,
• Has identified concrete and practical opportunities to create change in the current context
• Has a clear idea how to address this opportunity but has been lacking support and resources to implement this vision

What can be supported?

This programme is not restricted to specific thematic priorities or types of strategies and activities; we want to offer support to issues, strategies and activities that Polish organisations themselves see as the most important and impactful right now.

Organisations can apply based on the thematic priorities, agendas, and needs that are relevant to them and their context, while situating the work and outcomes supported by the grant in the following framework consisting of five strategic directions:

1. Empowered and inclusive LGBTI communities
2. Strong, resourced, skilled, accountable and sustainable LGBTI organisations
3. Social acceptance and inclusion of diversity related to sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics in societies
4. A legal and policy framework which protects and promotes human rights and equality of LGBTI persons at local and national levels
5. Fair, just and equal societies and economies

When applying, you will need to indicate the strategic direction(s) that your work will contribute to.For further information about these strategic directions, please see ILGA-Europe’s Strategic Framework.

The programme can support a wide range of strategies and activities, including advocacy, campaigning, alliance-building, movement development and (informal) education.

The key considerations in selecting partners in the programme will be:

• Whether the proposed project is based on a strong and insightful analysis of an opportunity to advance the movement’s agenda right now
• Whether the proposed project offers a clear action plan and convincing vision of change, rooted in the wider context in the country and LGBTI movement’s work
• Whether the organisation has knowledge and capacity to bring this vision and plan into action

How to apply?

• To apply please submit your application and budget by Sunday, 25 June 2023, 23:59 (CEST/ Brussels)
• Applications are to be sent to both ruslana@ilga-europe.org and seka@ilga-europe.org
• Please use the application form and budget template for this call, both available below
• We expect to inform all applicants about the outcomes of the call during the first week of August
• We expect the projects to start on 1 September, 2023 and be completed by 28 February, 2025. Final reports will be due on 31 March, 2025

How will we be working together?

• This programme is designed as a close cooperation between ILGA-Europe and grantee partners that combines funding with learning, coordination and capacity development activities.

• Learning, coordination and capacity development activities are an integral part of the programme, which relies on active participation of partners in both planning and implementation. It will be designed by ILGA-Europe in consultation with grantee partners to direct this support where it is most needed. We will rely on grantee partners to inform this work and to show initiative in identifying relevant interest and needs of their organisations.

• During the programme, we will be regularly in touch through quarterly calls. These conversations are to discuss your work, project progress, opportunities, threats, learning and other support ideas and needs, and the state of expenditures, as well as for us to discuss our updates and plans with you. These conversations are also important for us as an opportunity to learn from the experience of our grantee partners and to timely identify important connections to the work and realities of others in the broader LGBTI movement.

• We also hope that partners will be open to contributing to regional and sub-regional learning and coordination spaces, where relevant, so that diverse strategies and experiences are amplified and feed into the work of the wider movement.

• You will need to report on the grant twice: interim narrative and financial reports halfway through the project and final narrative and financial reports one month after project completion.

Financial management of the grant

• This is a project grant. Only the costs that are linked to the implementation of the goals and activities of the call and your approved project are eligible. The grant needs to be spent and the costs need to be incurred in the project period, i.e. 1 September 2023 – 28 February, 2025. All costs need to be documented (contracts, payslips, timesheets, invoices, proofs of payment and similar documents).

• To manage this grant, your organisation needs to have an accounting and financial management system in place that allows to track income and expenditures per project/ funder. You will be asked to report in Excel and support your expenditures with records: contracts, procurement documents, invoices, timesheets, proof of payment, documentation of exchange rates.

• This funding is sourced from the EVZ Foundation and the Global Equality Fund, so your expenses and overall financial management system will need to be compliant with the source funders’ regulations. ILGA-Europe will provide clear guidance on how to ensure this.

• You will need to track your costs on a regular basis, and be able to generate the following information and reporting on your grant’s finances:
  • During quarterly calls we will discuss the state of your expenditures
  • Interim financial reporting will occur halfway through the project.  The interim financial report will be an Excel sheet with a list of expenses and the supporting documentation for these expenditures.
  • Final financial reporting will occur at the end of the project period. You will have to have spent 100% of that year’s budget, submit the list of expenditures and the supporting documentation for all the expenses.

ANY QUESTIONS?

All answers were returned via email and are published on this page, in order to support equal access to information among all applicants.