Orskov Foundation-Community Projects Funding _ Deadline: 31-Dec-each year

The Orskov Foundation promotes sustainable development for the poorest rural communities in the world. We aim to achieve this through the integration of agricultural education with community projects. The resultant sharing of knowledge, experience and information will be key factors to enable people and communities to find their own solutions to the complex problems they face and move towards self-sufficiency on their own terms. We support both individual students and a programme of community projects. Each of the community projects we fund is set up using a revolving-fund. This is a simple method of providing access to affordable credit to buy what the communities  deem to be most useful. When they are able they then pay back to the fund to enable others to benefit. Each project, its goals and management, is set up in partnership with the active participation of the community groups involved.

Each year we receive many more applications for both student and community projects than we have the funds to support, so it is important that, before submitting an application, you take a few minutes to read the information below, as it will help you to decide whether your application is eligible for funding.

Applications for funding are only accepted between 1st October and 31st December each year.  Applications submitted outwith this period will not be considered.

STUDENT FUNDING

If your application does not meet all the following criteria it will not pass the initial shortlisting for consideration by the Trustees.

• Applications seeking funding for equipment, or attendance at conferences, will NOT be funded.
• Applications seeking funding to cover the costs of complete Bachelor, Masters or Doctorate courses, or parts of Bachelor, Masters or Doctorate courses will NOT be funded
• Applications seeking funding to cover the costs of Bachelor, Masters or Doctorate research projects will NOT be funded
• Applications that cannot demonstrate the potential to alleviate poverty and/or provide sustainable environmental benefits will NOT be funded.
• Applications from students not studying degrees related to agriculture, land use or environmental will NOT be funded.

If you have got this far then keep reading, as the next section contains some important guidance that must be followed for a student application to be successful.

• The student grants are only provided to help support costs of training at a university or similar organisation other than the university/college in which you are registered at the time of the application.
• Eligible students (graduate students from any countries which are, in the opinion of the trustees, regarded as developing countries) MUST be registered for graduate degrees at their home universities in a developing country and MUST be able to demonstrate that they have full support from the relevant university department/organisation that they are seeking training from.
• Preference will be given to support training aimed at sustainable land use problems with an emphasis on animal, plant and soil interactions, where it can be demonstrated that, in addition to contributing to knowledge, they will (a) have the potential to alleviate poverty and (b) provide sustainable environmental benefits, including adaptation/mitigation to the impact of climate change. Training outwith these areas will not be funded.
• The Trustees will only consider projects with a budget up to a maxium of £2,500.   This is the upper limit, not an indication that you should simply request this amount.
• Applicants will be expected to provide a budget and FULL justification for the funding claimed. Applicants that do not provide an adequate breakdown of the anticipated expenditure will not be shortlisted for evaluation.
• Please do not send any additional documentation, such as exam results, CVs, letters of support, etc.  These will not be used in the evaluation of your application.  Appropriate references will be sought for student applications that pass the evaluation stage.
• Projects will be selected by an open application process.  Grants will be awarded in March/April.
• The deadline for receipt of applications is 31st December each year. Applications received after this date will not be considered for evaluation.
• All sucessful student applicants will be expected to provide a full report at the end of their funding period.  This report will outline the outcomes from the application and a breakdown of the expenditure made.  A template for this report will be provided.
• Applications MUST be submitted using the Orskov Foundation application form and sent as an attachment to an email.  
• All applications must be submitted in English.
• Each section of the application form has been included for a reason.  In order to evaluate your application against all the others received you must include text in each section of the application form, otherwise your application will not be shortlisted.

COMMUNITY PROJECT FUNDING

• Funding will ONLY be provided where a clear demand can be demonstrated and evidence provided that the projects will be established and managed with the active participation of the community groups involved.
• The Trustees will only consider projects with a budget up to a maxium of £2,500.   This is the upper limit, not an indication that you should simply request this amount.  A breakdown of the intended budget is required.
• Community projects will only be considered eligible if they are based in countries which are, in the opinion of the trustees, regarded as developing countries.
• Community projects demonstrating innovation, rather than imitating the projects we have already funded, are more likely to be considered.
• Community projects MUST be able to demonstrate that they will be managed using the revolving fund principle.  This is a core requirement for our projects and if you can demonstrate an effective and innovative approach to achieving this, your application is more likely to be considered.
• Applicants will be expected to provide a budget and FULL justification for the grant claimed.  Applicants that do not provide an adequate breakdown of the anticipated expenditure will not be shortlisted for evaluation.
• All sucessful community project applicants will be expected to provide a full report at the end of their funding period.  This report will outline the outcomes from the application and a breakdown of the expenditure made.  A template for this report will be provided.
• Projects will be selected by an open application process. Grants will be awarded in March/April each year.
• The deadline for receipt of applications is 31st December each year.  Applications received after this date will not be considered for evaluation.
• Applications MUST be submitted using the Orskov Foundation application form and sent as an attachment to an email.
• All applications must be submitted in English.
• Each section of the application form has been included for a reason.  In order to evaluate your application against all the others received you must include text in each section of the application form, otherwise your application will not be shortlisted.

NOTE: Due to the large number of applications received each year it is not possible to provide individual feedback on unsuccessful applications. 

How to apply an individual student or community project grant

If you would like to apply for indivdual support or funding for a community project from the Orskov Foundation follow these easy steps:
STEP 1. Read the Guidelines to see if you are eligible to apply.
STEP 2. Complete the appropriate application form.
Application for COMMUNITY PROJECT funding can be downloaded as a Word file (111kb)
Application for INDIVIDUAL STUDENT funding can be downloaded as a Word file (106kb)
STEP 3. Submit your application form by email to: contact@orskovfoundation.org
Moreinfo:  http://www.orskovfoundation.org/apply