Published Thursday, March 18, 2021

 
The Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs in the U.S. Department of State announces through the Embassy in Costa Rica, the grant 100,000 Strong in the Americas Innovation Fund seeks applicants. This is a competition to increase higher education partnerships between the United States and Central America.

According to the embassy, the fund is the department’s signature hemispheric-wide initiative to advance a positive agenda for the region by harnessing the power of education to transform societies, provide opportunity, and stimulate economic growth.
 
Their goal is to provide 12 grants of $25,000 each to support new higher education partnerships to create and implement innovative models of academic training and student exchange programs between the United States and the region starting in January 2022.


Thematic areas in this grant worth 100-thousand dollars include Environment; Public Health; Climate Solutions; Human Rights; Health Sciences; Education Technology; Food and Agricultural Sciences; Water, Sanitation, Hygiene; Business Development; STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), among other disciplines.

Teams of higher education institutions in the United States and Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Belize, Nicaragua, or the Dominican Republic are invited to submit grant proposals to Partners of the Americas by the deadline of August 2, 2021.

The 100,000 Strong in the Americas (100K) Innovation Fund is the public-private sector collaboration between the U.S. Department of State, Partners of the Americas, Agro America, among other institutions.

“It is with great enthusiasm that AgroAmerica joins the State Department as strategic partners in this regional initiative in an organic way, because of our shared values, building, step by step, a future full of prosperity and hope for our countries," Fernando Bolaños Valle, CEO of AgroAmerica said. "We are convinced that the future of our continent depends on strategic investments like these, which will multiply more prosperity for the United States, Central America, and the Dominican Republic.”

Since its inception in 2013, and as of March 2021, the Fund has awarded 243 grants worth between $25,000 to $35,000 each,  to teams of 493 higher education institutions working in 25 countries and 49 states in the U.S., according to the U.S. Embassy.

As a result, students and faculty have access to innovative, sustainable academic training and exchange programs. In seven years (2013-2020), over 2,300 regional higher education institutions have joined the Innovation Network — including more than 1,000 universities and colleges in the United States.

Contributions from the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, along with 30 regional public/private sector partners, have allowed the Fund to award 245 grants to teams of almost 500 universities and community colleges.

People interested in applying proposals for this competition should visit the 100K Strong America site.


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What have you heard about Ticos interested in studying abroad? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com

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