The Muste Institute considers grant proposals:

• for new projects or campaigns, or efforts to expand existing work (we do not fund general support of ongoing operations)
• for projects with budgets of $50,000 or less
• from grassroots organizations with an annual budget of $500,000 or less
• from groups with limited or no access to more mainstream funding sources
• from groups located anywhere in the world
• for projects which are local, regional, national or global in scope

NOTE: The Muste Institute can and does directly fund organizations which do not have their own 501(c)3 non-profit tax-exempt status, which are not incorporated, and/or located outside the United States. We only require a fiscal sponsor if the group receiving the grant does not have its own bank account; we cannot issue checks to individuals. If you cannot receive a grant check made out to the name of your organization, you will need a fiscal sponsor.

Although we value the work, we do NOT consider grant proposals for the following:

• individual efforts or scholarships
• schools or universities
• organizations with significant access to government, corporate or mainstream charitable funding
• academic or research projects
• art, theater, film or video projects which are not tied to direct activism for social justice
• economic development projects
• capital campaigns or expenses
• direct social services
• legal defense or litigation
• lobbying or electoral campaigns
• projects geared toward participants’ personal improvement or business success
• conflict resolution or violence reduction projects, unless they directly promote activism for social justice.

NOTE: The Institute will not accept a new request from a previously funded group for two years after a grant. If you submitted a proposal in October 2006 and received a grant in December 2006, you will be eligible to apply again in October 2008 for grants made in December 2008. If you are unsure about when you will qualify, check in with our office before applying.

Please read these guidelines carefully and review our rosters of past grants on our website before applying to the Muste Institute for funding. If you are still uncertain about whether your project fits within our grantmaking priorities, you may contact our office well before the deadline to inquire. If you choose to do this, please start by sending a brief plain text description of your project via email to info@ajmuste.org — if you don't hear back within two weeks, you may follow up with another email and/or a phone call. .

WHEN TO APPLY

The next deadlines for submitting proposals are February 8, April 11, July 18 and October 3, 2008.

Proposals must be in the Muste Institute office by 5 pm on the deadline day (NOT postmarked on the deadline day).

The Institute's review and decision process takes about eight to ten weeks. The Institute does not consider proposals for projects which will have already taken place by the time our decision is made, so if your project has a definite timeline (like a conference, training, workshop, etc.) we urge you to apply at least three months before it is set to begin.

HOW TO APPLY

Groups located in the United States should submit their proposals by postal mail. Groups outside the United States are encouraged to submit their proposals via email, including the one-page summary. (Two copies are not required for proposals sent via email.)

PROPOSAL CHECKLIST

Grant proposals must be 10 pages or less and must include the following:

one-page Muste Institute summary form—download at http://ajmuste.org/Summary.rtf

proposal narrative of six pages or less, including:

• project name and organization name and address, at the top of the first page
• name of the contact person, with day and evening phone numbers, fax and email
• description of the project, including its relevance, targeted community, and evidence of the group's ability to carry it out;
• brief relevant biography of project coordinator(s);
• list of advisors to the project or organization, if any, including brief biographical information (2-3 sentences maximum) for each;
• three references — people who are not members of your group or directly involved in the project but who are familiar with your work (list each person's name, affiliation and contact info).

detailed project budget, showing categories of anticipated income and expenses for the project, with a list of other projected funding sources (confirmed or pending).

amount requested (maximum $2,000) and what expenses it would cover (preferably one or more line items from the project budget).

annual organizational budget, showing anticipated income and expenses for a current or upcoming fiscal year, with a list of other projected funding sources (confirmed or pending).

actual revenue & expense statement from the most recent complete year available, showing categories of income received and expenses incurred, and listing any foundation grants or other institutional support received.

fiscal sponsor details (only if your organization does not have its own bank account and you must use a sponsor for our grant): sponsoring organization's name and full contact information; brochure, annual report or description of the sponsoring organization; and tax-exemption letter (if any--501(c)(3) status is not required).

relevant additional supporting material, including newsletters, press clippings, etc. (optional)

NOTE: The Institute requires two copies each of the one-page summary, complete proposal and supporting materials. Please clip (do not staple) the one-page summary to the front of the proposal and supporting materials.

The Muste Institute accepts the National Network of Grantmakers (NNG) Common Grant Application. However, you must still include our one-page summary form (instead of the NNG cover sheet). If you use the NNG application, please send two copies each of the narrative, attachments, organizational and project budgets, actual revenue and expense statement and our one-page summary form.

If you receive a grant, you will have to provide a complete financial accounting, demonstrating that funds received from the Institute were used in accord with the grant agreement. This financial accounting is due as soon as the money is spent or within six months, whichever comes first (until funds are spent, you must submit an updated accounting every six months).