Description
The FY 2026 Leaders Lead On-Demand program is a grant opportunity provided by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) to develop ideas from across the Department of State into customized, two-way exchange projects. The program aims to build self-sustaining global, regional, and country-based networks of practitioners. The recipient will design and carry out a series of exchange projects for emerging leaders and mid-level professionals representing government, business, and civil society. The program expects to support approximately four to six exchange projects for approximately 150 participants, including approximately 110 foreign and 40 U.S. participants.
Key aspects of the program include:
• Providing targeted support for urgent or emerging U.S. foreign policy priorities
• Building lasting partnerships between emerging leaders and mid-level professionals from other countries and the United States
• Creating opportunities for foreign and U.S. emerging leaders and mid-level professionals to work together and share ideas, strategies, and solutions to important issues
• Strengthening professional and leadership skills for both foreign and U.S. participants
The recipient will be responsible for managing the overall program, including project design, recruitment and selection of participants, promotional materials, orientation, visa support, logistics, health benefits, participant monitoring, and data collection and reporting.
Some of the key requirements for the recipient include:
• Demonstrating at least four years of experience in conducting international exchanges
• Providing a detailed work plan that demonstrates the institution's ability to implement the program effectively
• Including a hypothetical project example and a detailed work plan
• Aligning the work plan with the program guidelines provided in the solicitation
• Demonstrating the capacity to manage multiple projects in different stages at once
• Providing a fully developed performance monitoring and evaluation plan
• Submitting financial reports and program reports as required
• Maintaining specific data on program participants and activities in an electronically accessible database format.