FY 2026 Stewards of Cultural Heritage
A cooperative agreement funds a U.S.-based organization to plan and run an international cultural heritage convening for selected foreign cultural ministers and U.S. stakeholders on cultural property protection, anti-trafficking, and follow-on diplomacy.
⚑ State Department/ECA cooperative agreement for program implementation, not research · Likely requires convening/exchange logistics and substantive event design · Eligibility not specified in excerpt; check NOFO for applicant class and any restrictions · Focused on cultural heritage diplomacy and anti-trafficking, with U.S. government and private-sector participation
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| IPPRA | 24 weak | outside portfolio topics; signature methods: community engaged, policy analysis; social/behavioral work is minor; funds other — not a research fit; eligibility unclear — verify in the NOFO |
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 20 weak | prototyping/demonstration stage |
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 10 none | technical depth: minor; funds other (capped) |
Description
ECA announces an open competition for a cooperative agreement to develop and implement a program that will convene cultural ministers from key countries at an iconic location in the United States for high level discussions on cultural heritage and cultural property protection as part of the State Department’s programming to mark America’s 250th birthday. The implementing partner will work closely with ECA to develop the program’s one-to-two-day exchange agenda, including showcasing innovation and new technologies of the U.S. private sector and other American institutions in the cultural heritage field; strengthening cooperation in combatting art and antiquities trafficking; and using cultural heritage to amplify global narratives on America’s foundational values. The convening will feature U.S. models, standards, and best practices; strengthen relationships with key countries in the cultural heritage field; and produce concrete follow-on steps to advance the program’s agenda. Two to three virtual sessions with working level representatives of the selected cultural ministers will precede the U.S. program, helping gain input into and solidify the agenda.
Participants will include 25-40 cultural ministers or equivalents/designees from select countries; representatives from the U.S. government, U.S. companies and other institutions involved in cultural heritage preservation and protection; and U.S. law enforcement focused on combatting art and antiquities trafficking. The program will introduce the foreign participants to U.S. advancements in cultural property protection and preservation, strengthen commercial diplomacy, and accelerate coordination between ECA and U.S. law enforcement, thereby enhancing border security and reducing financing from trafficked art and antiquities.
Please see the Notice of Funding Opportunity for additional Information.
Eligibility
Please see full announcement.
Apply
View on Grants.gov → CONTACT: Bureau Of Educational and Cultural Affairs <PerschlerMJ@state.gov>
Proposal brief SEE AN EXAMPLE →
A one-page internal memo: fit assessment, submission requirements, document scaffold, and next steps dated back from the deadline — tailored to your project idea if you add one.
Proposal shell · Federal (generic) conventions SEE A FEDERAL EXAMPLE →
Funder-faithful document skeletons — Federal (generic)'s document set with section headings, page limits, reviewer guidance, and writing prompts; add a project idea to get [DRAFT] starter bullets. Download as .md for Word or Overleaf.
Legacy IPPRA LLM assessment (v2.0, for comparison)
20/100 · gpt-5.4-mini · 2026-07-06
This is primarily an international exchange and convening program about cultural heritage, art/antiquities trafficking, and commercial diplomacy rather than a research opportunity. The only clear IPPRA overlap is a national-security-adjacent angle through border security and trafficking, but there is no substantial social science, survey, or policy research component that IPPRA would lead. Eligibility is also unclear from the synopsis, so a public university applicant cannot be assumed to be eligible.
Legacy scoring history
| 2026-07-06 | 20 | gpt-5.4-mini | This is primarily an international exchange and convening program about cultural heritage, art/antiquities trafficking, and commercial diplomacy rather than a research opportunity. The only clear IPPRA overlap is a national-security-adjacent angle through border security and trafficking, but there is no substantial social science, survey, or policy research component that IPPRA would lead. Eligibility is also unclear from the synopsis, so a public university applicant cannot be assumed to be eligible. |
| 2026-07-06 | 12 | gpt-5.4-mini | This is primarily a State Department cultural diplomacy and convening award focused on cultural heritage protection, art trafficking, and international exchange, not a research program. IPPRA’s survey, risk-communication, and behavioral strengths are not central here, though there is a minor national-security angle in trafficking and border security, with a slight environmental-policy-adjacent preservation component. Eligibility is unclear from the summary, but the opportunity appears aimed at an implementing partner for a diplomatic program rather than a research university-led study, so fit is low. |