{"id":63348,"date":"2020-08-01T18:10:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-01T18:10:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2020-09-28T20:57:38","modified_gmt":"2020-09-28T20:57:38","slug":"applications-invited-for-usaids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rubyskynews.com\/index.php\/2020\/08\/01\/applications-invited-for-usaids\/","title":{"rendered":"Applications Invited for USAID\u2019s Resilient, Inclusive & Sustainable Environments (RISE) Challenge 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nAbout the Challenge<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/div>\n
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<\/span><\/b><\/span>Why is USAID\u2019s Office of Gender Equality and Women\u2019s Empowerment running the RISE Challenge?
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\n<\/b><\/span>USAID\u2019s Office of Gender Equality and Women\u2019s Empowerment (GenDev), in collaboration with the E3\/Land and Urban and E3\/Forestry and Biodiversity Offices and the U.S. Global Development Lab, missions, and implementing partners, has identified the nexus of gender-based violence (GBV) within a range of environmental sectors as a gap in international development priorities and approaches. While both GBV and environmental issues are priorities for USAID and pose some of the world\u2019s most pressing challenges, there is little being done to test approaches and build evidence on effective interventions that can address persistent GBV issues that occur in environmental sectors.
 
GBV and environmental issues are interlinked; their interactions are complex, diverse, and multi-layered. In some contexts, they form a ruthless feedback loop by which gender-based attacks, harassment, and discrimination enhance the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services, and this environmental deterioration triggers new, more damaging forms of violence. In other contexts, preventing and responding to GBV unlocks opportunities for enhanced environmental action, as well as for women\u2019s and community empowerment.
 
Because the relationship and proposed programming addressing the linkages between GBV and environmental programming is still relatively new, a challenge grant competition allows USAID and partners to explore, apply, test, and learn from new approaches that could reduce both GBV and environmental harm.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
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\nWhat kinds of interventions are you looking for?<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/span><\/span>
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USAID is looking to fund organizations to innovatively adapt and implement promising or proven approaches to address GBV in environmental programming. The challenge seeks insights and learnings from other development and humanitarian sectors which have proven or promising practices to address GBV. RISE Challenge believes that the most successful, sustainable interventions will demonstrate integration and partnership between local environmental organizations, gender-based violence organizations, women\u2019s and girls\u2019 organizations, indigenous people\u2019s organizations, and community organizations. Please review the previous RISE winners<\/u><\/a><\/b> for examples.


Is RISE open to proposals that build on existing RISE work, extending it into implementation?<\/b><\/span>

Yes, RISE is open to proposals that build on existing RISE work provided they respond to the requirements outlined in the Request for Applications<\/u><\/a><\/b> (RFA). Please note that current RISE awardees are not eligible for additional RISE funding.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
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<\/span>What do you mean by the access, use, and control of natural resources?<\/span><\/span><\/b>

We mean programming that seeks to foster the sustainable stewardship of the land and its resources, namely issues such as land tenure and use, revenue generation including extractives and fisheries, biodiversity, conservation, and the work of environmental rights defenders.


Does the project have to be related to natural resource usage? Is GBV that arises as a result of climate change, though not related to natural resource usage, also acceptable?
<\/b>Yes, RISE interventions need to be directly related to natural resource usage. However, access, control, use, and availability of natural resources is deeply affected by climate change and variability.<\/span>


Can an applicant address more than one environmental sector pertaining to the access or use of natural resources?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span>
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Yes.<\/span><\/span>
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What types of gender-based violence will the RISE challenge address?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span>
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RISE encourages applications that address the following types of GBV in environmental programs: sexual, physical, psychological, economic, social, legal, institutional, and cyber abuse.<\/span><\/span>
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Will RISE results be used to inform policies?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span>
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Yes, a goal of the RISE Challenge is to generate new interventions, findings, and policies that inform sector-wide change with respect to the environment and gender-based violence.<\/span><\/span>
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Should the action necessarily be an innovation that will influence national policy on GBV?<\/b><\/span><\/span>
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No, projects funded by the RISE Challenge are not required to influence national policy.<\/span><\/span>


Is RISE more interested in on-the ground activities or interventions that focus on policy change?<\/b><\/span><\/span>

The RISE Challenge is seeking to fund projects that directly prevent or respond to gender-based violence within environmental programs. Projects should aim to improve gender and environmental outcomes in the communities and with the individuals they are working with.<\/span><\/span>


Is RISE interested in tools and methodologies that have been proven in the private sector and can be applied to capacity building and other development needs?<\/b><\/span><\/span>

Yes, RISE is interested in approaches from the private sector — as well as other relevant sectors, such as the humanitarian sector — that are proven or have promise to prevent and respond to gender-based violence in environmental programs.<\/span>

<\/span><\/span><\/span>What evidence base of tools and approaches is USAID hoping to generate through the RISE challenge?<\/span>
<\/span><\/b><\/span>Activities implemented through this challenge will contribute to the evidence base for strategies, policies, programs, and interventions that reduce GBV within a range of environmental sectors. Ideally, we will identify strategies and approaches that can be adapted and successfully applied in other geographic or environmental contexts.

<\/span><\/span><\/span>Can the proposal include knowledge or research-based support, or is it just intervention oriented?<\/span><\/b><\/span>

Yes. However the RISE Challenge will not fund interventions that are strictly research focused.<\/span><\/span>


How important is it to be able to deliver this work remotely given travel restrictions with the COVID-19 crisis?<\/b><\/span>
<\/span><\/span>RISE encourages approaches that are flexible, adaptable, and grounded in reality.  You project needs to be implementable, and we encourage the use of variety of approaches — both remote and in-person<\/span><\/span>.


What are the incentives for entering this competition?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n
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