Open Door Grant Making

EPF recognizes that smart people with good ideas can have significant social impact, especially working at the grassroots level. Organizations with these types of people bring fresh solutions and ideas to existing challenges and are the driving forces behind successful interventions.

Donors are traditionally risk averse and frequently shy away from supporting younger, less established organizations or innovative projects that address local needs in a new way. EPF, however, with our tested grant-making methodology, accepts grants on a rolling basis for projects that fit within our mission, but do not fall under a specific grant competition. Through the Open Door Program, EPF supports innovative pilot initiatives that increase civic engagement in social, economic, and political events for replication on a larger scale.

EPF’s Open Door Program is open for registered Georgian non-profit and other civil society organizations. In exceptional cases, however, Open Door Program can fund other types of organizations, if their proposals involve solutions of salient problems facing Georgian communities. Proposals submitted through Open Door Program should introduce innovative and at the same time feasible solutions to local problem(s) that are identified as priority based on reliable research and analysis. Proposed methodology must clearly demonstrate broad public engagement in identifying problems, finding solutions, and advocating for and implementing changes. Ideally, submitted proposals would lead to tangible and measurable social, political, economic, and/or behavioral changes at a local, regional, or national levels.

EPF underscores the importance of gender equality and encourages applicants to consider the different impact the project may have on male and female members of the society.

Proposals can be submitted during the year without any specific deadlines. EPF reviews proposals on a rolling basis and applicants will hear an initial response within a month of submission of either a proposal inquiry or full project proposal. Click here for EPF’s application submission instructions and materials.

Since the Open Door Program seeks to support genuinely innovative ideas, proposals submitted to the program should not duplicate and/or overlap activities that are currently or have already been implemented in the concrete area. Rather, they must reinforce and complement other projects and programs. Some examples of EPF-funded Open Door projects can be found here.

EPF cannot support:
• A particular political party (however, it may fund the work that includes all parties on issues like electoral processes if activities are transparent and fair);
• The activities related to lobbying for partisan purposes (except of the advocate for issues that bring about public and social good).
• Religious activities, capital construction projects for commercial purposes and military projects of any kind
• Funding for: micro-credit, small business loans, start-up capital for entrepreneurs,
• Non-applied academic research, proprietary market research, scholarships or travel grants for academic study,
• Medical equipment purchases.

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