Sunday, July 20, 2008

# 57: Submit an unsolicited grant proposal


Have you ever submitted an unsolicited grant proposal to the feds and had success? It's one of the strategies recommended by Cynthia M. Adams, CEO at GrantStation, in her series Understanding the Philanthropic Landscape.

GrantStation.com - GrantSeeker's Toolkit: "If you can't find a funder for your project, yet you strongly believe it should be funded, consider submitting it to a federal agency as an unsolicited proposal. This is the most difficult means of obtaining federal funds, but one that should be pursued if you think your project fits the goals and mission of a particular agency."
I haven't tried it, but it seems worthwhile if you can track down the right person to send it to. I think you'd have to balance your investment in preparing an unsolicited package with the odds that the agency will be interested. If you've been in conversation with the agency already, or have received funding from them for a related project, this might well be worthwhile.

So, does it work? Tell us your story. Please!