Voice in the Philippines is looking for new, inclusive, and bold ideas around boosting the economic empowerment of the following rightsholder groups: 

• Elderly/senior citizens and young people; 
• Indigenous people and ethnic minorities; 
• Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex communities;  
• Persons with disabilities; and 
• Women facing exploitation, abuse, and/or violence  

Innovation comes in different forms and from different contexts. As the landscape of the country’s economic situation continues to be volatile, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, the multiple vulnerabilities of the rightsholder groups are exacerbated. We continuously hear about income insecurity and loss, affecting individuals’ ability to support their needs, including their families. On the other side of this coin are the rightsholders’ grit and capabilities, and their call for meaningful participation in various economic empowerment processes and initiatives. 

Economic empowerment paired with innovation can lead to a whole new range of solutions that can contribute to equitable and inclusive employment, increased access to productive opportunities, sustainable community-led enterprises, and more. Voice invites civil society groups to pitch their ideas and co-create and test solutions with the rightsholders with diversity, inclusion and intersectionality at its core. 

What are we looking for?  

Specifically, Voice is looking for projects or ideas that test innovative approaches around the economic empowerment of rightsholder groups. The main impact theme the proposal should gear towards is the rightsholder’s improved access to (productive) resources (e.g. finance, land, and water) and employment.   

Voice recognises the importance of initiatives that respond to groups facing multiple layers of exclusion that cut across more than one rightsholders group.  Ideas that clearly highlight its intersectionality will definitely have an edge!  

Some examples of intersectional ideas around the main theme:  

• Women migrants and youth working together on the development/expansion of a multi-purpose cooperative. 
• Increasing access of women, elderly and youth farmers to inclusive market opportunities. 
• Optimising digital spaces in increasing the access of select rightsholder groups to livelihood and productive resources. 

Note, however, that Voice will NOT fund initiatives that focus on the provision of cash or any forms of financial and/or in-kind support to the project participants directly. For this Call, strengthening economic empowerment may be centered on supporting the participation of the rightsholders groups, testing mechanisms and structures to enable them to have increased access to productive services, strengthening capacities, and other similar approaches. 

Applications are open to locally registered organisations and consortia either led by or who work closely with the aforementioned rightsholder groups.  

For more ideas on what issues Voice prioritises, please see the Voice PH Context Analysis 2020 or check out previous Innovate & Learn grants. 

Proposals need to be within 24 months with a budget of up to €200,000 (approx. ₱10,600,000).  

What do we mean by Innovation? 

Innovation means anything that has not been tried before in a particular context, prioritising human-centred methodologies and approaches. If you have a new idea, method or approach, you are welcome to propose it in your application. Innovation does not only mean the use and applications of new technologies. It also means using tried and tested methods but for new purposes and with new target groups, audiences and themes. 

 Here are guiding questions that could be useful for you in designing the proposal: 

• How have you or others addressed the issue(s) before? 
• What did you learn from what has happened before? 
• What are you doing differently this time? 
• What are you doing to find out if it works? 
• How will others find the innovation useful? 
• How will the rightsholder group/s be involved in this innovation? 

Do not forget about the “Learn” in Innovate & Learn! Proposals under this grant type should be based on:  

1. Contextual analysis of the rigtsholders’ situation; and  
2. Learning questions anchored to the innovative idea to be tested. Learning questions are questions that help and guide your learning journey throughout your project and even beyond. These are questions that motivate you to reflect, explore, and innovate on your ways of working. 

Based on the results of the previous Innovate and Learn Grants, here are some tips for interested applicants: 

• Prioritise the key issues to be addressed by the project. These should be directly linked to the needs of the rightsholder groups and contextualised to the situation of the target areas. 
• Maintain a balance between the presentation of the key issues and the proposition of the innovative solutions. Any proposal that focuses only on the latter without the former has low chances of being approved. 
• Write learning questions you want to answer yourself. Answers to these questions are at the core of what the project wants to achieve. Integrate how you will share what you have learned throughout the whole process. 
• Describe how the rightsholder groups will meaningfully engage in the project. Social innovation is more effective when driven or demanded by the rightsholder groups themselves. Voice follows the principle of nothing about us without us. 
• Articulate clearly your previous efforts related to the project (direct or indirect), This is necessary in showing your commitment in achieving the project goals.  
• Rethink what innovative approaches and methodologies are. Voice promotes and supports effective solutions to address current social issues. You are challenged to assess whether the proposed strategies are business as usual or actually breakthrough solutions. 

Who can apply? 

Innovate and Learn Grants are open to:  

• Locally registered non-profit Filipino organisations
• Networks, consortium, and coalitions with a locally registered non-profit Filipino organisations  as the lead applicant 
• Locally registered Filipino social enterprises 

Applicants that are rightsholder-led will be prioritised.  An organisation is rightsholder-led when it is governed and managed by members of the rightsholder-group(s). The principle of “Nothing About Us Without Us” guides their work. If the rightsholders do not play roles in the governance and management of the organisation, the proposal needs to describe how the rightsholder groups are fully involved in the conceptualisation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the project. 

International organisations cannot be lead applicant but can team up as co-applicant in the case of consortium applications. 

What we won’t fund  

• Organisations with an annual turnover of over €2 million.    

• Funding of commercial services, investment or other commercial activities.  

Practising the Values of Voice 

Voice believes in the principle of Nothing About Us Without Us. In practice, this means Voice rightsholder groups need to be at the centre of any effort. They must be involved in the conceptualisation, planning, and implementation of any grant. They are equal partners in any consortium, network, or coalition, playing key governance and leadership roles. 

Linking and Learning 

Linking and Learning is at the heart and soul of Voice. All grantees are expected to participate in facilitated meetings and gatherings enabling the exchange of ideas and learnings from each other’s experiences.  Applicants must demonstrate in their proposals how they will identify, document, and share their learnings as they implement their project. These may come in many forms such as blog posts, videos, photo essay or audio recordings.  

Voice values diversity and inclusion. All grantees are expected to be able to interact with and learn from a diverse group of people coming from different backgrounds, orientations, and experiences. Interested applicants must be willing to work in a diverse community, which includes representatives from all of the Voice rightsholder groups. 

This Call for Proposals is closed and no longer accepting applications. Come back here at a later stage to learn about the grantees that have been selected in this Call for Proposals.

The current open Calls for Proposals can be found here.