2024 Foreign Policy Goals

All institutions applying for an IDEAS grant must substantively address at least one of the following U.S. foreign policy goals through their program activities. Competitive proposals will consider these goals in the context of travel and activities abroad as well as potential impact on U.S. communities and students’ career readiness. Examples of potential program themes are provided, but applicant institutions will want to demonstrate creativity in selecting topics that are authentic to their institutional mission and goals. Further examples of project ideas categorized by foreign policy goals can be found in Appendix C: Foreign Policy Goals in Action.

• Civil Society, Journalism, and Education
  • Example programming could focus on the role civil society, journalism, and/or education play in shaping public knowledge and governance.
• Climate, Energy, and the Environment
  • Example programming could focus on agriculture and rural development, climate, conserving nature, food security, natural resource management, ocean and polar affairs, and renewable energy
• Democracy and Human Rights
  • Example programming could focus on governance, human trafficking, immigration, refugees, and women’s empowerment.
• Economic Development and Entrepreneurship
  • Example programming could focus on business, closing skills gaps in local communities, human resources, infrastructure, resource development, and trade.
• Global Health
  • Example programming could focus on combating drugs, contagious and infectious diseases, COVID-19 recovery, nursing, and public health policy and management.
• Technology and Innovation
  • Example programming could focus on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, critical and emerging technologies, digital engagement and policies, engineering, and technology cooperation.

NOTE: In both phases of the grant proposal, applicants will be asked to indicate which U.S. foreign policy goal(s) their proposed projects plan to address and how they will seek to address it. Applicants may address more than one foreign policy goal but should identify a primary foreign policy goal of focus.

TIP: Proposals that request funding to support domestic capacity building such as the development of resources, faculty and staff professional development, or creation of an institution’s first study abroad program may fit best under the Economic Development and Entrepreneurship foreign policy goal. The proposal may then detail how the international experience related to the proposed program activities will help students to develop global career skills that they can use to support their future careers or economic development in their local community.

2025 IDEAS Consortium Grant, Preparing the Workforce of the Future

The IDEAS Program will award approximately one grant of up to $50,000 under the 2025 IDEAS grant competition to a consortium of at least two U.S colleges and/or universities to collaborate on building study abroad capacity, programs, and resources at U.S. colleges and universities that will focus on preparing the workforce of the future.

Through this consortium grant, the IDEAS Program aims to:

1. encourage collaboration and resource-sharing within U.S. higher education on how to use international education to more effectively prepare a future workforce that is equipped with global skills needed to meet local industry needs and drive U.S. economic prosperity;
2. increase study abroad capacity and programs linked to local workforce development goals;
3. provide expanded opportunities for U.S. students to participate in global workforce development opportunities, preparing them to participate in good-paying skilled jobs.

Applicants will need to identify an emerging or established but growing industry in their community that is currently facing a gap in skilled workers and outline how their proposal IDEAS grant project will help students obtain the international skills needed for their local workforce. This industry could be in any field, ranging from agriculture to cybersecurity to public health, but applicants will need to detail the industry-specific skills in demand in their community and how the proposed international programming will help develop them. Applicants will also be required to outline how they will share the lessons learned on developing study abroad programs and resources aligned with industry needs with the wider study abroad community. Consortium applications will need to engage at least two accredited higher education institutions collaborating to address workforce needs in their communities.

As with all IDEAS grant applications, consortium grant applicants may propose a variety of project activities as outlined in Section 1b of the RFP that aim at building study abroad capacity on their specific campuses. Regardless of the programming proposed, all consortium grant applicants must allocate at least $5,000 of their budgets to developing and sharing resources with the wider U.S. higher education community.

For full details on the IDEAS consortium grant, please review section 2c of the Phase One Request for Proposals.

Applications for an IDEAS consortium grant may also be considered for a $35,000 IDEAS grant, pending availability of funding.