American Councils for International Education is pleased to announce the annual Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) Matching Grants program for FLEX and YES alumni. The GYSD Matching Grants program is funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) of the United States Department of State.

Groups of FLEX and YES alumni are invited to apply for matching funds of up to $500 to implement local community service projects as part of the Global Youth Service Day initiative weekend: April 12-14 2019. In order to receive funding, alumni must conduct local fundraising efforts to secure contributions from other donors. Those funds can be matched on a dollar-to-dollar basis.

Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) is an annual international event that:

  • Mobilizes youth and adults to identify and address the needs of their communities through service;
  • Recruits the next generation of volunteers;
  • Educates the public about the role of young people as community leaders by highlighting the contributions they make to their communities year-round.

Eligibility: 

In order to participate in this program, alumni must:

  • Be an alumnus/a of the FLEX or YES program from or living in one of the following counties:  Albania, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Senegal, Serbia, Tajikistan and Ukraine.
  • Be in compliance with the two-year home residency requirement following the program;
  • Update their information in the alumni database, which may be done at any American Councils office or electronically by following this link.

Choose a Cause: 

  • Community Building
  • Education
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Human Rights
  • Hunger

GYSD Grants Timeline:

  • Applications Available – December 10, 2018
  • Applications Due – January 10, 2019
  • Notification – Early March 2019
  • Funds Transferred – Late March-Early April 2019
  • Global Youth Service Day Weekend: April 12-14, 2019
  • Reports Submitted May 5, 2019

The application deadline is Thursday January 10, 2019 11:59 PM Eastern Time.

More Information

For more information contact the FLEX Alumni Coordinator in your country/region or email flexalumni@americancouncils.org. To learn more about the GYSD grant projects awarded in the past click here. Learn more about Global Youth Service Day at the YSA Website

Please be aware that proposals may be funded in part and American Councils may request that applicants modify their budgets in order to accommodate partial funding.

Global Youth Service Day Matching Grant Applications are available at:

 ais.americancouncils.org/GYSD