Updated July 2020

Sylff Project Grant (SPG)
CALL FOR APPLICATIONSThe Sylff Association was launched in April 2017 to commemorate Sylff’s 30th anniversary with the aim ofbringing closer together all the stakeholders in the Sylff community, including fellows, steering committee
members of 69 Sylff institutions, and the staff of the Nippon Foundation and the Tokyo Foundation for Policy
Research.
To promote Sylff’s core mission and help fellows make a positive impact as leaders in addressing increasingly
complex social problems in our interconnected world, the Sylff Association secretariat is offering Sylff ProjectGrants (SPG) of up to US$100,000 to fellows who are committed to bringing about positive social changeover the long term and wish to undertake a large-scale social project.
SPG can be a powerful tool in enabling Sylff fellows to play the kind of dynamic leadership role envisionedby the Sylff Mission and Philosophy.

1. About Sylff Project Grant
The Sylff Project Grant (SPG) supports long-term projects that can be expected to have significant social impact
and make a tangible contribution to resolving a social problem. An SPG project should be initiated by a Sylff
fellow and embody the Sylff Mission and Philosophy. As a rule, grants will be provided to projects whose
feasibility and effectiveness have already been demonstrated and that are seeking scale-up, scale-out, andspin-out opportunities. Originality, creativity, and innovativeness are essential criteria for an award. The Sylff
Association secretariat will provide a maximum of US$100,000 per successful project. Applicants areencouraged to combine an SPG award with other funding sources to enable projects to be undertaken on aneven larger scale.
2. Eligibility Requirements(1) The applicant must be a Sylff fellow with leadership responsibilities for the proposed project.
(a) The applicant (Sylff fellow) is responsible for the overall project, including idea generation andconceptualization, design of the action plan, implementation, management, communication with thesecretariat, and follow-up after the project period.
(b) Non-Sylff project members (paid or unpaid) may participate to undertake project planning,implementation, and management. The project may also include assistants, collaborators, sponsors, andadvisors.
(2) The project must directly address a social problem, employ original, creative, and innovative approaches, anddemonstrate feasibility and sustainability.
(3) The main purpose of SPG is to support “social action” that leads to significant change in society. Proposals
focused on research are NOT eligible.
(a) Projects for theoretical or basic research will not be considered.
(b) Projects whose main outcomes are academic in nature (creating analytical reports, publishing papers
and books, constructing databases and archives, etc.) will not be considered.
(c) Even if they are ultimately aimed at producing social benefits, proposals that do not include social
contribution activities but are concerned with evaluating the effectiveness of methodologies, conducting
experiments and surveys, collecting and analyzing data, etc. will not be regarded as “social action”
projects.
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(4)

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(d) Projects whose implementation in society is essentially outsourced to a third party will not beconsidered.
As a rule, a proposal should be an outgrowth of the applicant’s current or past projects or be based on
activities reflecting the applicant’s ability to successfully implement the proposed project. (If the proposal isfor a new project without antecedents, the applicant should demonstrate in a convincing manner how theproject can reasonably be expected to produce desired outcomes.)(a) The applicant is required to have experience in the target field and a sufficient grasp of the project’sscale. A solid grounding in the subject and a reliable roadmap are required for the project to have areasonable chance of effectively addressing a social problem.
(b) An SPG project should not aim simply to apply models and methodologies that have proven effective in
one field to other fields.
A concrete plan should be drawn up to address the social problem in a sustainable manner after the SPG
grant period.
(a) The applicant should remain committed to the target field on an ongoing basis.
(b) If the project is to be handed to a third party following completion, the applicant must obtain assurancesthat it will be continued in a sustainable manner.
Grants under this program cannot be made to for-profit corporations or to individuals seeking to conduct a
commercial business.
While there is no prescribed project period, the Sylff Association secretariat reserves the right to suggest
scheduling revisions upon reviewing the application.

3. Application and Selection(1) Applicants must submit an application form (downloadable as a Word file), two letters of reference(instructions included in the application form), budget (downloadable as an Excel file), and projectschedule (downloadable as an Excel file).
(2) The Association secretariat will screen proposed projects for initiative, innovativeness, originality,feasibility, social impact, and future sustainability. We may request interviews with applicants and/orreferees on the phone, in person, or through other formats. The application will be assessed by the SPG
review panel, and the secretariat will make a final decision on the grant.
4. Amount of Grant
The maximum amount of a Sylff Project Grant is US$100,000. The actual amount disbursed will be reviewed
and determined by the Sylff Association secretariat.
5. Project Budget
The purchase of office supplies and other required goods may be included in the budget, but the grant may
not be used to construct buildings or purchase real estate.
When budgeting indirect costs, such as salary, professional fees, rent and utilities, and purchases ofequipment, explanations must be given of how these items will be used in the proposed project. They should
fall within the scope what an SPG grant can cover, and the secretariat may request that such costs bereexamined if it feels that items are too costly or account for an unreasonably high percentage to the total
budget; it may also suggest that the applicant find other funding sources. Applicants may also be requested
to revise the budget for direct costs before and during selection, or when an Agreement is signed. Applicants
will be held accountable for all proposed budget items.

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6. Grant Disbursement
The grant will be disbursed directly to successful applicants.
An Agreement will be signed between the successful applicant and the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research(Association secretariat). In case the grant is to be disbursed in installments, the Foundation will discuss thenumber and timing of payments with the applicant and include this information in the Agreement.
A project report, including a narrative description of the results, and a financial report shall be submitted at
the end of the grant period. The financial report must be accompanied by receipts. Should actualexpenditures turn out to be significantly less than the disbursed amount, the Foundation may request arefund of the unexpended funds. The deadline(s) for the submission of reports will take the duration of theproject into account.
7. Additional Funding Opportunities
If the Association secretariat determines that a project should continue to meet a social need, it may assist thegrantee find other funding sources to further enlarge the scope of the project following the SPG grant period.

8. Schedule
Applications are accepted throughout the year. They should be submitted at least six months prior to the startof the proposed project. Please allow approximately four months to complete the screening process, after
which the applicant will be notified of the decision.
9. Other Matters(1) SPG recipients will be requested to share the results of their projects with the Sylff community in a variety ofways, including by writing articles for the Sylff website.
(2) Members of the Association secretariat may visit and observe SPG projects.
(3) All application documents and communications must be typed in English.
(4) Applicants may be asked to submit additional information during the selection process.

***Inquiries and applications should be sent to:
Sylff Association Secretariat
Attn: Sylff Project Grant Coordinator
Email: sylff[a]tkfd.or.jp (replace [a] with @).
The Sylff Association secretariat will accept inquiries about this program via email ONLY.

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