April, 5th 2007
Fundraising for your community
Use this checklist to develop profiles of the funders you research - building your own information base might prove very helpful and will save you a lot of time in the future.
* Do you have full and correct contact details of the funder?
* Does the funder support the specific subject area for which you are seeking resources? For example, if you are seeking funds for a programme involving university education, you should immediately cross off your prospect list those funders interested only in early childhood education.
* Does the funder indicate an interest in your country or geographic region?
* Is the funder a grant-making or an operational foundation? Operational foundations prefer to carry out their own programmes and usually do not accept funding applications. They can, however, offer valuable expertise in their stated programme interests.
* Does the funder make grants for the type of support you are requesting? For example, if you seek funding for a conference, you should not approach a funder that explicitly states it does not support conferences and seminars. Most funders have restrictions or limitations on their grant-making programme.
* Does the funder only support major, consortia projects that may involve a number of organisations, including governmental partners? For example, you should not request support to equip a single school laboratory from a funder that is only interested in the development of the administration of a country's education system.
* Does the funder make grants for the amount of money you will be requesting? As a rule, you should not request 20,000 euro from a funder that never made a grant above 5,000 euro, or alternatively, you should not request 5,000 euro from a funder that states they do not make grants smaller than 20,000 euro.
* Does the funder require matching funding? Most funders require or encourage matching funding although they do not always state it explicitly. Check your funder's position before submitting the application as he may not wish to support the full cost of a project and might ask for evidence of other funding.
* Does the funder accept full project proposals or does he prefer letter proposals? Is an initial, brief letter of inquiry required before submitting a full proposals.
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