Deadline: 25-Jul-25
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.
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.
Funding Information
- Award amounts:
- award amount may range from a minimum of $500 to a maximum of $25,000
- Length of performance period:
- up to 12 months
Ineligible Projects
- The following types of programs are not eligible for funding:
- Programs relating to partisan political activity;
- Charitable activities;
- Construction programs;
- Programs that support specific religious activities;
- Fundraising campaigns;
- Lobbying for specific legislation or programs;
- Scientific research;
- Programs intended primarily for the growth or institutional development of the organization;
- Programs that duplicate existing programs; or
- For-profit programs.
Participants and Audiences
- Project activities must primarily take place or be initiated in Bulgaria and should be directed towards Bulgarian and/or regional (non-U.S. citizen) audiences/participants. Audiences, which will vary by program and focus, include but are not limited to students (particularly at secondary and university levels), academics and think-tanks, government officials (at all levels), journalists, professionals in strategic areas, entrepreneurs, etc.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Public Diplomacy Section encourages applications from Bulgarian, European or, U.S.-based organizations and individuals with proven experience of executing programs. Proposals that demonstrate the long-term sustainability of the proposed project will receive priority. Organizations may include:
- Registered not-for-profit organizations, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations with programming experience
- Individuals
- Non-profit or governmental educational institutions
- Foreign Public Entities (FPE) and Governmental institutions
Ineligibility Criteria
- For-profit or commercial entities are not eligible to apply.
For more information, visit U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria.