About

InterActions enables professional exchange and cooperation between civic initiatives, independent media, research institutes and social business in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. By participating in InterActions, activists, journalists, social entrepreneurs, public policy experts and researchers can choose for themselves a suitable host organisation where they want to be placed. Applicants should be affiliated with organisations, movements or networks in their home country.  Alternatively, an organisation can use the programme to invite an expert from a like-minded organisation to be placed with them.

There are 2 tracks:

Track 1. For individual applicants
Track 2. For organisations

Both sides participating in the professional exchange should work on related topics but in different countries (see the list of eligible countries below).

Applicants should decide what they want to gain from their professional exchange and how to achieve it. They need to  agree on it with either their host organisation or their invited guest (depending who is the applicant) before submitting their application. As part of the application process for the InterActions Programme, the applicant should submit a proposal with a general concept for their professional exchange.

The Prague Civil Society Centre will select the participants based on the concepts they submit as part of their application. Successful candidates will be provided with financial support to cover the costs related to their exchange.

Who can apply?

Individual or organisations working in one or more of these fields:

• NGOs, civil society groups focused on human rights, ecology, urbanism and other related topics
• Independent media and social media influencers
• Think tanks
• Research institutes engaged with our key themes
• Social business
• IT start-ups with social impact
• Informal education initiatives (for example, online education platforms)

Applicants should have proven experience and commitment to their field in their country or region.

We accept applications from organisations and citizens of the following countries in yellow on the map below:

Former Prague Civil Society Centre fellows and interns cannot apply for Track 1, but they can encourage others to apply or use the Interactions Programme to invite a colleague to their organisation for a professional exchange within Track 2.  If you’ve participated in any other programme or event hosted by the Centre, you are still eligible to apply.

What kind of professional exchange proposals will get support?

Applicants should have a well developed idea of what they want to achieve with their InterActions professional exchange.  It can be research, skills-development, or any other idea that you want to collaborate on with a host organisation or an invited colleague. Applicants are free to propose any topic. However, the Prague Civil Society Centre does have some thematic priorities (see guidelines below).

We welcome all ideas, but the applications should include a concrete description of:

• What applicants expect to gain from the expertise of their host organisation/invited colleague.
• What kinds of tasks or activities will take place during the exchange and how will they help the applicant reach their goals.
• How will the knowledge acquired during the exchange contribute to the work of the applicant’s organisation.

Proposals for purely academic research are not likely to be supported, nor are applicants who want to work on their PhD thesis.

Applicants will be shortlisted to the InterActions programme based on their applications and the general concept of the exchange. Those who are shortlisted will be asked to submit a more detailed plan for the exchange.

What is covered?

Applicants must submit a budget proposal of up to €4,000. Up to €3000 of this amount is meant to cover the travel and living expenses of the person visiting the organisation. It can be used to cover flight tickets, accommodation, food, local transportation, telecommunications and other related costs. A fixed sum of €1,000 from the total budget will go to the host organisation as a host fee. Organisations applying to the programme under Track 2 can choose to allocate a part of their host fee as an honorarium for the invited guest and use the remaining amount to cover other expenses.

The final amount of financial support awarded varies depending on the length and location of the InterActions exchange. We kindly ask applicants to be modest and realistic in their budget proposals and to look into more economic options when calculating, for example, accommodation or travel costs. The budget proposal is one of the criteria we take into consideration when selecting participants. The final amount to be awarded is subject to change before funding is allocated.

How to prepare your application

Track 1 (Individuals):

1.  Identify and contact potential host organisations.
We recommend you approach several organisations in order to increase your chances of finding one that will agree to host you. Host organisation should be working on topics relevant to your work in your own country. When contacting potential host organisations, we recommend you clearly explain how you see their role in the exchange and why you want to be hosted by this organisation in particular.

Host organisations can be located in the following countries:

Eastern EuropeCentral AsiaEU Member StatesSoutheast EuropeArmeniaKazakhstanBulgariaBosnia and HerzegovinaAzerbaijanKyrgyzstanCroatiaKosovoBelarusTajikistanCzech RepublicMontenegro
GeorgiaTurkmenistanEstoniaNorth MacedoniaMoldovaUzbekistanHungarySerbiaRussiaLatviaUkraineLithuaniaPolandRomaniaSlovakiaSlovenia

2 . Once accepted by a host organisation, discuss the plan for the exchange with them and obtain a letter of support.
It is important that the host organisation is aware of the applicant’s goals and ready to accept them for professional exchange. To confirm this agreement, make sure to get a support letter from the host organisation. This will need to be submitted along with the application to the programme. (template below).

3. Calculate anticipated expenses and fill in the budget template (see below).

Track 2 (Inviting organisations):

Organisations can apply to invite  a colleague who works in the same field in another country to share experience and methodologies. Inviting organisations should be located in one of the countries from the table above in Central Asia or Eastern Europe.

1.  Choose a person to invite to your organisation for an exchange.
The invited person should have proven experience in the area and be affiliated or work in an organisation located in one of the countries of Central Europe, the Baltics, the Balkans, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

2. Agree on the goal and the activities of the exchange. Obtain the CV of the person you want to invite to your organisation.
Contact the person and discuss the goals of the exchange, planned activities to achieve them, and mutual expectations. Ask the person to provide you with his or her CV. You will need to submit it along with your application.

3. Calculate anticipated expenses and fill in the budget template (see below).

Selection criteria

Proven track record of both sides participating in the professional exchange: We welcome applications from individuals and organisations who already have experience in their field and can demonstrate it. Individual applicants should be affiliated with organisations, movements or networks in their home country that have a clear track-record of achievement.

Relevance of the host organisation/invited person to the applicant`s goal: It should be clear why the applicant`s goals and needs match with the expertise of the other side (host organisation and invited experts).

Quality of the application: The more realistic and concrete the proposal is, the higher chance it will get support. Very ambitious and complex proposals do not necessarily stand a better chance of being supported.

Compatibility with Prague Civil Society Centre priority themes: The Centre gives higher priority to proposals that align with its priority themes (see guidelines below). Yet, we are open to proposals that do not correspond to these themes. We recommend such applicants stress how their proposal has specific relevance for their country and how their work will benefit from it.

Programme timeline:

April 30, 2020–Deadline for applications
June 30, 2020–Shortlisted candidates informed.
August 15, 2020–Deadline for submission of detailed plans
September-November 2020–Slot 1
February -May 2021–Slot 2
June-August 2021–Slot 3
(Those selected for the InterActions Programme can chose a slot that suits them)

How to apply

There is a 2-step application process. You must complete both steps before the deadline, April 30, 2020.

Step 1. Complete the application form.

Application Form (Track 1/ Individuals)

Application Form (Track 2/Organisations)

Step 2. Send the budget and letter of support from the host (track 1) /CV of the expert (Track 2) to interactions.pcsc@gmail.com

Documents to download:
Programme Guidelines                                                    
Budget Proposal Form (Both Tracks)  
Support Letter Template

FAQs

Guide For Potential Host Organisations

Questions:

Please read the InterActions Programme Guideline first. It gives a detailed explanation of all the steps and procedures.

If your organisation has been contacted by an individual applicant, we recommend you discuss the proposed activities and mutual expectations before issuing a letter of support to ensure that this person will be a good fit for your organisation. If you  have questions about the InterActions Professional Exchange Programme, please get in touch with the Centre at interactions.pcsc@gmail.com

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