The U.S. Mission to Vietnam is pleased to invite Vietnamese alumni of U.S. Government-funded (USG) educational and exchange programs (International Exchange Alumni) to submit proposals for the 2015 International Exchange Alumni Small Grant Competition. These grants aim at strengthening the USG Alumni community in Vietnam by creating opportunities for alumni to work with each other on a shared vision of a brighter future of Vietnam and the U.S. - Vietnam relations through addressing shared concerns. Alumni team can submit proposals as a group of individuals or under an organization with which alumni is working with a budget of up to USD $10,000. Proposals must be in English. Deadline for application is 17:00, Monday, September 14, 2015. Final selections will be announced by the end of September 2015.
Eligible teams must include at least three alumni members who have participated in all U.S. Government-sponsored programs, including (but not limited to):
° Fulbright program (including Fulbright Economics Teaching Program - FETP)
° Hubert Humphrey Fellowship Program
° International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP)
° Voluntary Visitor Program
° Programs under Vietnam Education Fund (VEF); United States Agency for International Development (USAID), eg: AYVP; United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), eg: Borlaug, etc.
° Eisenhower Fellowship Program
° Global Undergraduate Exchange (UGRAD) and Studies of the U.S. Institute (SUSI)
° English Language Programs (Access Micro-scholarships, E-teachers, TEA, Brunei-U.S. Partnership, etc.)
° Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) programs
In 2015, we would like to encourage projects that support the following themes:
° Social Inclusion/Alternatives for Vulnerable Populations
° Empowering Women and Girls
° Economic Empowerment, (eg: Market economy, Entrepreneurship and Youth Employment, etc.)
° Climate Change, Wildlife & Environmental Protection
° Global Health Awareness
° Conflict Resolution
° Human Rights/Democracy/Good governance/Rule of Law
° Access to Education (Eg: English for the disadvantage, soft skills training, etc.)
We also strongly advise alumni teams who have submitted proposals for Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund 2015 to scale down their projects and explore seed funding from this Grant Competition.
Priority will be given to projects that have:
° Relevance to the provided themes
° A high number of alumni from different programs, or an alumni thematic group (alumni working in a same field)
° Use of Information and communications technology
° High amount of cost-sharing (any cost shared by alumni instead of being requested from the Embassy, eg: venue rental, voluntary contribution in terms of time, travel, accommodation, coordination, etc.)
° Implementation in underserved locations
Grant funds can be used to:
° Initiate activities for an alumni-run group
° Initiate a public or community service program
° Launch a pilot program at a nongovernmental organization or academic institution
° Organize training programs or conferences for professional colleagues and/or other alumni
° Fund travel of US colleagues to Vietnam for conferences, training programs and professional collaboration
° Development and publication of curricula, textbooks, or related reference or educational materials
° Conduct alumni networking events
° Conduct other community development projects judged by the selection committee to be in the interest of the program goals
° Reasonable amount of honorarium for training sessions
Grant funds cannot be used to:
° Cover excessive representational costs such as meals, drinks, gifts, etc.
° Support individual research projects of alumni
° Pay salaries or administrative overhead
° Pay for international travel outside of Vietnam
Alumni interested in this competition are invited to submit proposals online at: http://goo.gl/zh5IEH than 17:00, Monday, September 14, 2015.
Winning projects will be announced at the end of September 2015.
Should you have any question or need support in inviting alumni members to join your project, please do not hesitate to contact your alumni coordinators.
Ms. Nguyen Thuy Trang
Vietnam Alumni Coordinator Assistant • Public Affairs Section
US Embassy Hanoi • Address: 3rd Floor Rose Garden Tower, 170 Ngoc Khanh Street, Hanoi
• Email: NguyenTT1@state.gov
• Tel: (844) 3850 5000 ext: 6044 • Fax: (844) 3850 5120
Ms. Le Thi Kim Muon
Cultural Affairs Assistant
Public Affairs Section
US Consulate General Ho Chi Minh City
• Address: 8th Floor, Diamond Plaza, 34 Le Duan Street, District 1, HCMC
• Email: lemuontk@state.gov
• Tel: (848) 3520 4657 • Fax: (848) 3520 4622
