About the project “Think Nature!”
“Think Nature!” is a three-year project implemented by the Civil Society Promotion Center (CPCD), and financially supported by Sweden in the amount of 3 million BAM. The project is based on 5 components (Advocacy Networks, Eco HUBs, Eco Schools, Youth and Eco Media).
The main goal of the project is to increase the impact of civil society in environmental protection through networking of civil society organizations (CSOs), institutions, professionals, media and youth for joint, synchronized and strong action at the local level. An additional significance of the project is the contribution to the implementation of the requirements of the European Union and international agreements in the field of environment, climate and energy that have been ratified by Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The project “Think Nature!” is based on various activities that contribute to raising the level of environmental awareness. Advocacy campaigns increase the responsibility of state bodies, companies and the population in addressing environmental issues.
The “Think Nature!” project includes many stakeholders: civil society organizations, the media, citizens (especially young people), companies, primary and secondary schools, local government and state institutions.
During the implementation of this project, special attention is paid to multidisciplinary areas when it comes to multidimensional poverty, conflict prevention, gender equality, human rights and environmental issues. All components of the project contain a strong gender component.
Implementation of the project “Think Nature!” started on September 1, 2019. In December 2019, the first public call for grant funds for the implementation of corporate social responsibility initiatives was published, after which three grants were approved to civil society organizations. More details about the awarded grants can be found at the following link: https://mislioprirodi.ba/odobreni-grantovi/. After that, in December 2020, the second public call for corporate social responsibility initiatives grants was published within the project “Think Nature!”, and 7 grants were approved, which are currently being implemented. More information on the awarded grants is available at the following link: https://mislioprirodi.ba/drugi-krug-odobrenih-grantova/.
About the corporate social responsibility initiatives grant
The complexity of environmental issues requires a continuous presence at the local level, expertise in the field of environmental protection, networking with local actors, the ability to communicate with young people, schools and the media, and the capacity to provide educational and professional support to other organizations and schools.
Corporate social responsibility initiatives grants are intended for organizations whose mission is to prevent the actions of unscrupulous polluting done by companies and harming the environment, as well as to call on these companies to be more responsible and contribute to solving specific pollution problems in their environment.
By implementing Corporate social responsibility initiatives grants, we want to point out how socially responsible companies are and present ways in which companies can be influenced to become more socially responsible. The implementation of these grants aims to contribute to changing the practice in companies in order for companies to reduce the harmful impact on the environment. Campaigns implemented under this grant do not have to be based on activities directed against polluting companies. Organizations can propose alternative solutions and work with companies to improve the environment. Alternative solutions can be based on the application of good practices of other companies, as well as the establishment of cooperation between organizations and companies in order for companies to properly direct their socially responsible business.
During the implementation of these activities, the beneficiaries of the corporate social responsibility initiative grants will have administrative, technical and financial support from the CPCD. We encourage cooperation with Eco HUBs. Also, beneficiaries of media grants will be informed about the actions of corporate social responsibility initiatives so that they can report on the implementation of the project and thus contribute to the most successful results of the project. CPCD will also participate in the promotion of activities and results through its good cooperation with the media.
- Specific objectives of the call
The goal of the grants is to organize citizens’ actions (groups and individuals), through civil society organizations, in order to point out the problems of polluters in local communities and reduce the negative impact on the environment. Through this call, we want to encourage the action of citizens through civil society organizations that will point out the key problems of environmental protection and bad practices of companies. By supporting companies, we help them become more socially responsible.
In this way, the grants will contribute to the realization of the goals of the project “Think Nature!”, strengthen the capacity of local communities, increase the responsibility of companies towards the community and people living in it, prevent further pollution and environmental destruction, and raise awareness of stakeholders on environmental problems.
Through their project activities, civil society organizations will:
- Prevent polluters, businesses, companies and state-owned companies from continuing to endanger the environment and the lives of people in the local community, whereby activities cannot be targeted at individuals as polluters;
- Involve a large number of citizens in advocacy processes aimed at improving corporate social responsibility;
- Emphasize the role of decision makers in environmental degradation;
- Connect decision makers, organizations, institutions and local actors who can work together to solve the problem;
- Promote examples of corporate social responsibility and multiply positive practices in other communities;
- Ensure implementation of existing strategic documents, laws and procedures concerning environmental protection;
- Advocate for the establishment of sustainable programs of companies in the field of water resources, forests, waste, air and land quality, energy efficiency and renewable energy sources;
- Create conditions for better and more efficient control of companies’ impact on the environment;
- Design and run campaigns that will be focused on a long-term solution to environmental problems that will be gender sensitive and gender inclusive.
CPCD encourages civil society organizations in their project proposals to be oriented towards achieving the stated goals with an innovative and creative approach and critical thinking.
2. General provisions
One of the criteria for awarding grants is respect for gender equality through the implementation of project activities, ie equal participation of women and men in the implementation of the project. When awarding grants, the CPCD will follow the principles:
Nationality: all applicants must be local, BiH organizations;
Equality: the grant award process is completely impartial, which means that all applicants will be selected by the election commission, in accordance with the published criteria;
Without overlap: The CPCD will have a flexible approach and ensure complementarity in the implementation of the “Think of Nature!” Project. However, applications that have significant overlap with existing projects will not be considered;
Principle of (non) retroactivity: grants will only cover costs incurred during the approved project implementation period. Any cost incurred outside the implementation period will be considered an ineligible cost.
3. Financial and time frame
| The total amount of the grant at this stage | 50.000 BAM |
| Maximum number of grants | 5 |
| Maximum amount of funds per approved grant | Up to 10.000 BAM |
| Project implementation duration | 5 – 7 months |
4. Eligibility criteria
The condition for applicants is that they meet one of the following criteria:
- Registered in accordance with the positive legal regulations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as an association or foundation;
- To achieve the statutory goals in the area of public interest which is the subject of the public call.
Entities not eligible to apply for grants:
- Political organizations;
- Non-governmental organizations that are foreign representations of organizations in Bosnia and Herzegovina;
- Religious groups;
- Non-governmental organizations whose goals are not in line with the broader and/or specific goals of the project “Think Nature!”;
- Non-governmental organizations that use financial resources, economic and other resources, directly or indirectly for the purpose of individuals, groups or any type of organization that is in any way related to terrorism;
- Organizations whose individuals or members are on the EU list of sanctioned individuals or groups.
5. Costs
Eligible costs:
- Eligible and reasonable costs directly related to the project incurred during the implementation of the activity;
- Travel and accommodation directly related to project implementation;
- Rational part of costs related to space and equipment rental, communications, overheads, current account maintenance costs, bank fees, etc.;
- Procurement of equipment (up to 5% of the total value of the grant);
- Court costs and attorney’s fees;
- Costs of access to information (access to professional databases or costs incurred by independent data collection);
- Employee costs directly related to project implementation (amounts of operating costs, salaries and contributions are limited to 30% of the total budget).
Ineligible costs:
- Purchase of vehicles;
- Costs incurred before the start of project implementation;
- International travel;
- Debts and service costs (interest rates);
- Provisions for losses, debts or contingent liabilities;
- Purchase of land or real estate;
- Loans to third parties.
6. Who can apply?
The grants are intended for domestic civil society organizations involved in environmental protection, advocacy or working in another area related to the project proposal and call objectives. In this category, partnership with other civil society organizations is also possible. Organizations need to have experience in implementing similar projects in the same or similar field of activity and experience in managing projects of the same or similar scope.
7. How to apply?
To apply for this public call, please submit project proposal and additional documents exclusively via email grantovi@mislioprirodi.ba.
Please send project proposals in one of the official languages of BiH.
| PROJECT DOCUMENTATION |
| Project proposal |
| Project budget |
| Partnership statement (If there is a partner organization) |
| ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION[1] |
| Decision on registration of the project applicant (In case of amendments to the decision, the decision is submitted with the initial decision on registration) |
| Statute (In case of amendments to the statute, the currently valid version is submitted) |
| Certificate of tax registration of the project applicant (ID number) |
| Balance sheet and income statement for the previous fiscal year |
| Narrative annual report for 2020 |
| Other documents (letters of support, certificates, references) – desirable but not mandatory |
One organization can send several project proposals under this grant line, i.e., public call, but within this public call only one project can be awarded to one organization. An organization can be a partner organization on only one project in addition to being the lead applicant. It is possible to be a partner in two projects if the organization is not the main applicant in either of the projects.
Organizations that are currently beneficiaries of grant funds within the project “Think Nature!” may apply to this public call provided that they currently meet all obligations related to compliance with the procedures and guidelines related to project implementation.
Organizations that are part of the project “Think Nature!”, beneficiaries of one of the grants, and who have not fulfilled their obligations prescribed by the project implementation contract, cannot apply to the public call. Also, organizations that are currently implementing a project within the project “Think Nature!” can get a maximum of one more project, i.e., they can implement a maximum of two projects at the same time.
8. How to send electronic documentation?
All documents containing signatures and stamps should be submitted in PDF format. Please do not send documents in ZIP. file or any other compressed format.
The maximum email size can be 10 MB. In case the attached documents are larger than 10 MB, please send the documents in several emails, indicating in the first email SUBJECT: Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives_ (name of the applicant) _x / #, instead of the mark “x” please state the number of the e-mail, and instead of the “#” state the total number of e-mails that you will send. In the body of the e-mail, please provide a numbered list of all attached documents in that e-mail.
9. Time frame
The application deadline is 45 days from the publication of the public call for grants for project proposals.
| Public call calendar (steps in the selection process) | Date | |
| 1 | Publication of a public call on the website of the project “Think Nature!” and on the CPCD website (www.civilnodrustvo.ba). | (October 08, 2021) |
| 2 | Organization of an online info session for interested applicants. | (October 15, 2021) |
| 3 | Deadline for questions regarding the public call. | (November 11, 2021) |
| 4 | Deadline for answering questions regarding the public call. | (November 14, 2021) |
| 5 | Deadline for submission of documentation and project proposal application. | (November 21, 2021)(23:59 hrs.) |
10. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Within the deadline, applicants may amend, supplement or withdraw project proposals. The applicant submits an amendment, supplement or withdrawal indicating one option [“modification/supplement/withdrawal” of the project proposal SD003/CSRI / (name/title of the applicant)].
In order to protect the integrity and right to privacy of grant applicants, all information obtained from applicants is considered strictly confidential.
Questions related to the public call can be sent no later than 10 days before the deadline exclusively by email: grantovi@mislioprirodi.ba.
All answers to the questions will be published on the project website at least 7 days before the deadline.
11. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT TO THE PROJECT PROPOSAL?
After the deadline for submission of project proposals, all applicants will go through the evaluation process by the commission in the segments of administrative and technical-administrative evaluation. All applicants will receive a confirmation email upon receipt of the application with a list of all documents received in the attachment. If the application meets the administrative criteria, a technical-financial evaluation is performed.
Administrative evaluation
All project proposals received by e-mail grantovi@mislioprirodi.ba within the deadline for applications, which contain complete documentation, will be included in the further process, i.e., the process of technical and financial evaluation.
Technical-financial evaluation
All project proposals that pass the administrative evaluation will be evaluated by two evaluators in accordance with the criteria and scoring stated in the table below:
| 1 | RELEVANCE | No. of points / max. no. of points |
| 1.1. | The project proposal is relevant in relation to the objectives and priorities of the Public call. | /10 |
| 1.2. | The project proposal is relevant in terms of needs and problems related to the target area. Stakeholder consultations were conducted. The applicant has the support of relevant institutions. | /10 |
| TOTAL | /20 | |
| 2 | FINANCIAL AND OPERATIONAL CAPACITIES | |
| 2.1. | The applicant has experience in implementing similar projects within a given thematic framework and in managing projects of similar size. | /5 |
| 2.2. | The applicant has the knowledge and expertise required to implement the proposed project. The organization has enough staff who have experience and knowledge in a given thematic framework. | /5 |
| 2.3. | The applicant has sufficient capacity (including staff, equipment, workspace and budget management capacity). | /5 |
| 2.4. | The applicant has established cooperation with institutions, schools, media and other civil society organizations. The applicant operates in several municipalities. | /5 |
| TOTAL | /20 | |
| 3 | PROJECT DESIGN | |
| 3.1. | General and specific goals are clearly defined. Expected project results defined and measurable. | /5 |
| 3.2. | A consistent and logical link between objectives, expected results and proposed activities. External risks and ways to address them are clearly defined. | /5 |
| 3.3. | The activities are clearly explained. The action plan is clear and realistic. | /5 |
| 3.4. | Project results are sustainable even after the project is completed. | /5 |
| TOTAL | /20 | |
| 4 | BUDGET | |
| 4.1. | The budget is clearly presented in excel and all items are narratively explained. | /5 |
| 4.2. | The costs are realistic and necessary for the implementation of activities. | /5 |
| 4.3. | The relationship between planned costs and results is satisfactory. | /10 |
| TOTAL | /20 | |
| 5 | ADDED VALUE | |
| 5.1. | The project implies the engagement of a larger number of beneficiaries in the activities and in the decision-making process. Volunteers are included. | /5 |
| 5.2. | The project supports gender equality, vulnerable categories in society and equality on any other basis. | /5 |
| 5.3. | The project proposal contains specific added values, elements such as promotion of gender equality and equal opportunities, opportunities for people with disabilities, minority rights, innovation. | /10 |
| TOTAL | /20 | |
| TOTAL | /100 |
12. The process after the selection
If there is a need for certain modifications to the project proposal (including the budget), the CPCD reserves the right to negotiate with the applicant. After the selection process and possible negotiations on the content of the project are completed, the conclusion of a grant agreement signed by both parties will begin.
A list of grant-winning organizations for each call will be published on the project website.
Upon signing the contract, the CPCD will organize an interactive session for grant beneficiaries to present financial, programming and reporting procedures. Grant beneficiaries will be acquainted with the guidelines on grant management and the guidelines related to the visibility of the project. Grant beneficiaries will have regular monitoring visits during implementation to ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of the awarded grants.
At this stage, after signing the contract, the CPCD will make an assessment of the organizations, grant beneficiaries. This assessment will evaluate organizational capacity in four categories: financial controls, human capacity, administrative procedures, and security procedures. If the assessment shows shortcomings in some categories, the applicant organization will work with the support and instructions of the CPCD on strengthening of its capacities.
List of annexes
Annex-3-Partnership statement.docx.doc
[1]Shortlisted applicants will be required to submit certified copies of the required documentation
