Deadline: 19-Aug-2024
The Congressional Office for International Leadership (COIL) is inviting applications for the Open World Program.
COIL engages Members of Congress and their constituents in congressional and citizen diplomacy with political and civic leaders from around the globe. COIL achieves this through the Open World program, a ten-day professional exchange dedicated to strengthening mutual understanding and sharing best practices in accountable governance, civil society, the private sector, and the rule of law.
The Open World program is a ten-day professional exchange built on the foundational values of authentic communication and immersive cultural experiences. The program begins in Washington DC, where participants get acquainted with American federalism, culture, and leadership. Participants engage with Members of Congress and their staff to discuss common challenges and participate in unfiltered dialogue. Traveling to communities across the United States, participants meet with their professional counterparts to share expertise and establish lasting partnerships. During the program, participants stay with host families, giving them an intimate view of American life. The program allows American leaders and their counterparts from participating countries to engage constructively with one another in a manner that complements the U.S. Congress’s legislative diplomacy efforts on a wide array of timely issues.
COIL will bring leaders from around the globe to the United States on the Open World program and strive to foster lasting ties that result in ongoing cooperation and collaboration. This solicitation seeks proposals to host participants in calendar year (CY) 2025 from the following countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, North Macedonia, Papua New Guinea, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Solomon Islands, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu and Vietnam.
COIL will give greater weight to those 2025 hosting proposals that (a) give participants significant exposure to federal, state, county, and local legislators; the structure and functions of legislatures; and the legislative process; (b) include planned meeting(s) with relevant Members of Congress and their staff; (c) are likely to produce new partnerships or further existing ones; (d) include specific follow-on project activities and significant projected results, such as plans for substantive future reverse travel; 1 (e) include collaborative programming with American young professionals organizations; and (f) provide for significant cost-sharing of program expenses. Some hosting proposals will be judged specifically for their ability to program as described in (a) above, especially in a state capital when the state legislature is in session.
Overall, the Open World program focuses on developing an international leadership network through which professional counterparts with mutual interests are able to consult and cooperate with each other on issues affecting their communities. Reflecting its identity as a U.S. legislative branch entity, COIL ensures that all delegations receive significant exposure to the role and procedures of American legislative bodies. As part of this focus, COIL asks local host organizations to set up meetings with Members of Congress, congressional staff, and state, county, and local legislators and their staff members, so that participants can review functions such as lawmaking, legislative oversight, and constituent relations with officials engaged in these activities. Participants should also learn about the effect of legislation on their exchange’s assigned theme.
Objectives
- Open World program participants include some of the participating countries’ most dynamic, highly educated leaders, who are eager to share their experiences with Americans for a robust and mutually beneficial exchange of ideas—an element critical to their programming. Each proposed Open World program must ensure that participants have the opportunity to:
- Develop an understanding of the role of the U.S. Congress and state, county, and local legislatures in shaping, overseeing, and/or funding programs and institutions connected with the applicable Open World hosting theme and subtheme.
- Observe and learn about their American professional counterparts and their role in society/people who interact with them. For example, a delegation of mayors and other city officials might meet with the host community’s mayor, city manager, city council members, mayor’s office staff, key departmental staff, and local political reporters.
- Share their professional expertise through planned formal presentations, panel discussions, and/or roundtables with their American counterparts and contacts, and present information about their country’s culture, history, and current affairs to members of their host community (this is a program requirement).
- Develop an understanding of how citizens and interest groups work to affect the legislative process (at the federal, state, county, and local levels) on issues related to the participants’ hosting theme.
- Network with American professionals and hosts who are interested in maintaining contact beyond the eight-day community visit for ongoing cooperation and collaboration.
- Exchange views with influential representatives of appropriate federal, state, county, and local government agencies; legislators; civic organizations and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs); and the business and education communities.
- Participate in community events to gain an understanding of the role of community organizations and their interactions with all levels of government.
Hosting Themes
- Below, listed by country, are the hosting themes, each with an accompanying theme.
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Green Energy Transition and Electricity Management – March 26
- Members of Parliament – December 2
- Belarus
- Cultural Heritage Preservation – February 19
- Informal Education – August 6
- Estonia
- Georgia
- Children’s Behavioral Development/Autism – February 5
- Inclusivity and Women’s’ Empowerment – June 11
- Youth Outreach and Engagement/American Spaces and Libraries – June 11
- Parliamentary Staffers – July 15
- Oct. 29 – NGO Management/Youth Activism
- Hungary
- Climate Policy: Clean Energy Solutions – June 11
- Local Government Representatives – June 11
- Indonesia
- Members of Parliament – September 16
- Kazakhstan
- NGO Management – February 19
- Public Library Development – February 19
- Kosovo
- Kyrgyzstan
- Effective Advocacy and Legislative Education – October 15
- Latvia
- Civil Society/NGO Development – February 5
- Journalism/Fighting Disinformation – July 23
- Social Media Influencers/Civic Engagement – July 23
- Lithuania
- Accessibility in Education – Feb. 5
- Emergency and Crisis Preparedness – May 7
- Historical Memory for All – July 23
- Moldova
- Mongolia
- Judicial Rule of Law – April 23
- Rule of Law: Prosecutors – June 4
- Members of Parliament – September 16
- North Macedonia
- Members of Parliament – April 1
- Public Administration – July 23
- Papua New Guinea
- Members of Parliament – July 15
- Poland
- Cybersecurity – January 29
- Renewable Energy/Energy Independence/Nuclear Energy – January 29
- Business & Academia/University Partnerships: Entrepreneurship – October 29
- Economic Development of Small & Medium Sized Municipalities – October 29
- Regional (Balkan)
- Women in Business – May 7
- Youth Engagement – September 10
- Regional (Central Asia)
- Combatting Gender Based Violence – March 26
- Strengthening Local Governance: Women Leaders – October 15
- Romania
- Journalism – March 5
- Education/School Management – August 6
- Education/School Management: Vocational/Rural – August 6
- Members of Parliament – December 2
- Serbia
- Members of Parliament – March 11
- Solomon Islands
- Members of Parliament – July 15
- Tajikistan
- Enhancing Professional Journalism and Media Experts to Counter Disinformation – March 26
- Modern Mining Operations – October 15
- Religious Freedom and Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) – October 15
- Turkmenistan
- Information Resilience – March 26
- Members of Parliament – April 1
- Education: STEM for High Schools and Role of Technology & Internet – October 15
- Ukraine
- Serving Children in Times of War – January 28
- Young Veterans Integration – January 28
- Resilience and Community Building – March 5
- Conflict Resolution and Peace Building – March 5
- Cultural Heritage Preservation – March 5
- Inclusivity in Society – March 5
- Veterans Integration Through Education – March 5
- Members of Parliament – April 1
- Serving Children in Times of War – May 6
- Public Health Issues – May 7
- Humanitarian Aid/Support Services – May 7
- Legal Dimensions of Modern Warfare – June 3
- Processing War Crimes – June 3
- Anti-Corruption/Monitoring of Foreign Assistance – September 10
- Fighting Disinformation – September 10
- Public Health Issues – September 10
- Health Care Systems/Communication – September 10
- Members of Parliament – October 7 1
- War Recovery/Peer to Peer Programs – November 4
- Uzbekistan
- Air Quality – February 19
- Water Resource Management – February 19
- Members of Parliament – October 7
- Vanuatu
- Members of Parliament – July 15
- Vietnam
- Members of Parliament – September 16
Eligibility Criteria
- Any U.S.-based organization with either established foreign visitor programs or demonstrated ability to host foreign visitors is eligible. U.S.-based organizations with ongoing project activity or initiatives in any of the countries covered by this solicitation that can be furthered by an Open World program visit should describe this activity. An applicant proposal:
- Must demonstrate that the applicant organization has the ability, experience, and expertise to provide excellent programming in the Hosting Theme(s) for which it is applying and/or will establish cooperative agreements with expert local host organizations that can do so.
- Will be given preference if it demonstrates that the applicant organization has the ability to provide programmatic activities with federal, state, county, and local legislators and legislative staff that will enhance the participants’ understanding of the legislative process and the structure and functions of American legislative bodies.
- Will be given preference if it is likely to produce new partnerships or further existing ones.
- Will be given preference if it includes ideas for specific follow-on project activities and/or significant projected results.
- Will be given preference if it demonstrates how the applicant organization will involve one or more organizations composed of young American professionals in providing some of the delegations’ professional, networking, and cross-cultural programming. To the extent possible, such young professional organizations should be focused on activities relevant to a delegation’s Hosting Theme.
- Will be given preference if its accompanying budget submission includes a significant cost share/in-kind contribution for Open World delegations, such as paying all or a significant portion of local hosting expenses, or all or portions of airfares.
- Will be given preference if it demonstrates how results will be accomplished.
- On a limited basis, COIL will permit organizations awarded 2025 Open World grants under these guidelines to nominate candidates for competitive delegate selection for exchanges that will support the organizations’ ongoing or proposed projects/partnerships. Any applicant organization that wishes to nominate candidates must include in its proposal a clear strategy for nominations that demonstrates the organization’s ability to identify qualified candidates who match the Open World program’s criteria. If the applicant organization plans on having one or more participating-country organizations propose candidates for a specific hosting program, the rationale for using each organization, and each organization’s complete contact information, must be included in the proposal. The nomination strategy must also demonstrate that the candidates will meet the program’s selection criteria, enhance a community partnership and/or project, and/or foster long-term collaboration with U.S. counterparts.
- Any candidates nominated by grantees must submit the Open World program’s standard participant application form and go through the same competitive, transparent vetting process as other nominees for the program. COIL will closely coordinate the nomination process with the relevant grantees, and grantees can submit their list of nominees in priority order. Please note that these programs receive extra scrutiny from the vetting committees, and if there are not sufficient finalists from the grantee’s nominees, other Open World program finalists that fit the delegation will complete the delegation.
- COIL also seeks proposals that, for one or more local programs, clearly specify the type(s) of participants desired (e.g., regional and local legislators, mayors, NGO leaders, media professionals) and/or localities that participants should come from, in order to have Open World exchanges that support specific projects or foster existing partnerships. Please make such requests very clear in any proposal.
For more information, visit COIL.