US Department of State - Human Rights, Accountability, and Access to Information in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea)

Please provide the following:

1. Applicant – Name, department, and contact information.
2. Collaborators – Name, department, and institution
3. Participating Organizations
4. Program Category (from the following)
   1. Fostering the Free Flow of Information into, out of, and within the DPRK
   2. Documentation and Advocacy

Questions should be sent to [email protected]

Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)
https://www.state.gov/j/drl/p/290503.htm
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For a list of current limited submission program please visit:https://research.columbia.edu/content/limitedsubmissions#text-6028
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Program Summary: The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) announces an open competition for organizations interested in submitting applications for projects that support the policy objective to promote human rights and accountability in the DPRK.

This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) includes two (2) categories in which applicants are able to submit applications.

For all programs, projects should aim to have impact that leads to reforms and should have the potential for sustainability beyond DRL resources. DRL’s preference is to avoid duplicating past efforts by supporting new and creative approaches. This does not exclude from consideration projects that improve upon or expand existing successful projects in a new and complementary way. Programs should seek to include groups that can bring perspectives based on their religion, gender, disability, race, ethnicity, and/or sexual orientation and gender identity. Programs should be demand-driven and locally led to the extent possible. DRL also requires all of its programming to be non-discriminatory and expects implementers to include strategies for integration of individuals/organizations regardless of religion, gender, disability, race, ethnicity, and/or sexual orientation and gender identity.

Where appropriate, competitive proposals may include:

• Opportunities for beneficiaries to apply their new knowledge and skills in practical efforts.
• Solicitation of feedback and suggestions from beneficiaries when developing activities in order to strengthen the sustainability of programs and participant ownership of project outcomes.
• Input from participants on sustainability plans and systematic review of the plans throughout the life of the project with adjustments made as necessary.
• Inclusion of vulnerable populations.
• Joint identification and definition of key concepts with relevant stakeholders and stakeholder input into project activities.
• Systematic follow up with beneficiaries at specific intervals (3 months, 6 months, etc.) after the completion of activities to track how beneficiaries are retaining new knowledge as well as applying their new skills.

Activities that are not typically considered competitive include, but are not limited to:

• The provision of large amounts of humanitarian assistance;
• Purely academic exchanges;
• Off-shore activities that are not clearly linked to in-country initiatives and impact or are not necessary for security concerns;
• Theoretical explorations of human rights or democracy issues;
• Micro-loans or similar small business development initiatives.

Program Categories

Fostering the Free Flow of Information into, out of, and within the DPRK
DRL seeks projects that promote human rights and accountability through the programmatic approach of fostering the free flow of information into, out of and within the DPRK. Illustrative program activities include:

• Producing and transmitting radio broadcasts into North Korea, including managing the transmissions of radio broadcasts into North Korea on behalf of existing defector-led or Seoul-based organizations producing radio programs for North Korean audiences;
• Producing content and/or acquiring existing content of interest to North Korean audiences;
• Exploring new mechanisms or expanding existing mechanisms for sharing or consuming information and content;
• Raising awareness of legal rights under existing DPRK domestic laws and its international human rights obligations;
• Raising awareness of international best-practices and norms; and,
• Promoting fundamental freedoms, including expression, movement, association, and peaceful assembly.

Organizations may propose activities not specifically identified above that align with the approach of fostering the free flow of information to promote human rights. Organizations submitting applications for this category are strongly encouraged to do so in partnership with at least one other organization. The organization submitting the application is designated as the lead applicant with partner organizations included as sub-award recipients. While organizations are limited to submitting only one (1) application under this category, this limitation does not extend to being included as a partner in another organization’s application.

Documentation and Advocacy
DRL seeks projects that promote human rights and accountability through the programmatic approach of increasing the amount of objective, credible information available about human rights in the DPRK, raising international awareness about human rights conditions, and engaging international actors to adopt approaches or actions that facilitate improvements in human rights conditions and/or lead to increased accountability for human rights violations and abuses. Illustrative program activities include:

• Establishing and/or maintaining a public online database of prisons and gulags in the DPRK, including a list of political prisoners;
• Documenting cases of human rights violations and abuses in the DPRK, including cases of forced repatriations or other human rights violations or abuses of North Korean people outside of the DPRK;
• Publishing reports that meaningfully contribute to, but do not duplicate or repackage, public information on DPRK human rights conditions;
• Increasing information available on perpetrators of human rights violations or abuses;
• Amplifying the documentation work of the UN Commission of Inquiry on the situation in the DPRK;
• Submitting reports or conducting advocacy campaigns at international or other relevant forums; and,
• Expanding global partnerships to mobilize increased support in other regions and countries for human rights in North Korea.

Organizations may propose activities not specifically identified above that align with the approach of increasing the amount of objective, credible information about human rights in the DPRK, raising international awareness, and engaging international actors. Organizations submitting applications under this category must do so in partnership with at least one other organization. The organization submitting the application is designated as the lead applicant with partner organizations included as sub-award recipients. Failure to partner with at least one other organization may result in the application being deemed technically ineligible and may not be included for consideration by the review panel. While organizations are limited to submitting only one (1) application under this category, this limitation does not extend to being included as a partner in another organization’s application.