OpenStreetMap Microgrant_Template

[salimbaidoun-tomtom]

Microgrant Proposal

Individual/Group Details

• Name:
• Group: if applicable
• Location: city, country
• Contact Details: provide email, mailing address, phone number, etc directly in email to EWG

Project Title

Project Overview

Explain in detail the idea you are proposing, with technical specifics if appropriate

About you

Provide a brief summary of you and/or your group and why you are well positioned to work on this project. Also indicate if you have previously been awarded an OSMF microgrant.

Objectives and Impact

Explain in some detail what problems project will address, how it will benefit the regional and/or global community, and how it aligns with the OpenStreetMap mission and goals? How is this project innovative, valuable, and have potential for impact? What will be the long term impact of the grant?

Grant Amount Requested (In EUR)

Provide detailed budget line breakdown (developer time, computation resources, travel, etc), along with the total requested.

Indicate if other funding sources will be deployed on the project, or if you are offering discount or partially pro bono time to make the project work

Also, explain the need for funding. why is funding necessary for this project to be successful?

Implementation Plan

Timeline:

Outline the timeline for implementing your idea. Include key milestones, dependencies and anticipated completion dates.

Community engagement:

How will you share plans and progress, and get input, from the community for this project?

SLA and maintenance and sustainability:

What will be service standards, and ongoing requirements for the project. What is needed for future sustainability?

Evaluation and Success Metrics

Describe the metrics and methods to evaluate the success of your project, in numbers if possible.

Risks

Assess potential risks (technical, community, etc) by identifying potential issues, their likelihood and impact, and how to manage them effectively.

Conflict of Interest:

Applicants must make a good-faith effort to avoid conflicts of interest to ensure their proposal is judged on the merits of their application.

• Transparency:

Disclose any potential conflicts of interest with the OSM Foundation. Be open about your financial interests, relationships, and affiliations that could influence judgement on your application.

Recommendations: from Community and possibly from Working Groups

Provide links to testimonials or pre-recommendations on the idea, or have supporters comment below.

[mikelmaron]

My feedback:

• Make sure it's doable by a "micro" level project
• Could be organized as questions, and they provide answers. A bit friendlier
• Give some idea of length of answers expected
• Gantt chart is too much to ask, not always used in project planning
• Community engagement and communication is important aspect -- can we ask about that?
• A section evaluating risk to the projects could be helpful -- whether technical or otherwise
• Community recommendations -- this could be in comments on the ticket, rather than pre collected

[salimbaidoun-tomtom]

• Will separate the success criteria (requester) and scoring (EWG)?
• Scoring is by the EWG members.
• communicate the ideas on the Community user forum on a single post? Ask community members to temp "join in EWG " to do the scoring? use the post polling? show them that they are accountable
• Add risks and mitigation if possible?

[tordanik]

A few comments:

• Asking for Gantt charts and a SLA seem like overly high barriers for this kind of project.
• I expect that many, perhaps most, applicants will be individual developers, not representatives of an organization or group. So I would be inclined to omit the "Organization/Group Details" section on the top. Of course, groups expressing a recommendation (as detailed further down) would still be an useful signal.
• Privacy-sensitive contact information such as addresses and phone numbers shouldn't be public. While we need some way to contact the applicant, I think that a GitHub and/or OSM user name is sufficient for the first steps, and further detail can be requested privately later in the selection process (e.g. when it's time to sign a contract).

[drolbr]

Comments made during the discussion in the meeting yesterday:

• I should be made clear which parts are relevant for scoring (i.e. must be present at time of the application) and which parts afterwards help to make the project result as useful as possible
• The application should address risks of the project (both risks to fail to deliver and downsides of result)

[matkoniecz]

In addition to comments above - especially #14 (comment) and #14 (comment)

A No-Conflict of interest Letter will need to be attached

if something like that is requested then template for it also should be provided (is it adding anything to description of conflict of interest risks?)

[salimbaidoun-tomtom]

Microgrant Proposal FAQ

Individual/Group Details

Q: What information should I include in the "Name" field?
    A: Fill in your full name here.

Q:  What if I'm applying as a group?
    A: List the primary contact person's name here. Include information about your group in the "Group" field.

Q:  Where do I put my contact details?
    A: While this section asks for location, avoid including phone numbers, email addresses, or mailing addresses directly in the proposal. The instructions mention including this information in a separate email to EWG_.

Project Title

Q: How creative can I be with the title?
    A: The title should be clear, concise, and accurately reflect your project's purpose. While a bit of creativity is okay, prioritize clarity to grab the reviewers' attention.

Project Overview

Q: How technical should I get?
    A: Tailor the level of technical detail to your audience. Assume some technical knowledge, but explain complex concepts simply.

About You

Q: What kind of information should I include about myself/group?
    A: Briefly highlight your relevant skills, experience, and accomplishments that make you well-suited for this project.

Objectives and Impact

Q: How do I best explain the project's benefits?
    A: Clearly define the problem your project addresses and how it aligns with OpenStreetMap's mission and goals. Quantify the impact whenever possible (e.g., number of people reached, areas mapped).

Q: What makes my project innovative?
    A: Explain how your project offers a unique solution or approach compared to existing methods.

Grant Amount Requested (In EUR)

Q:  How detailed should the budget breakdown be?
    A: Provide a clear line-by-line breakdown of anticipated expenses (e.g., developer time, software licenses, travel). Justify each expense and explain how it contributes to the project.

Q:  What if I have other funding sources?
    A: Disclose any additional funding sources secured or planned for this project.

Q: Why do I need to explain the need for funding?
    A: Clearly demonstrate how the requested grant is essential for the project's success. Explain how the funds will be used to overcome specific obstacles.

Implementation Plan

Timeline:

Q: How specific should the timeline be?
    A: Create a realistic timeline with key milestones (e.g., project phases, deliverables), completion dates, and any dependencies between tasks.

Community Engagement:

Q: How can I ensure community involvement?
    Describe your strategies for keeping the community informed about project progress, soliciting feedback, and collaborating throughout the implementation process.

SLA and maintenance and sustainability:

Q: What does "SLA" stand for?
    A: SLA stands for Service Level Agreement. Briefly explain the expected performance standards for your project and any ongoing maintenance requirements to ensure its long-term viability.

Evaluation and Success Metrics

Q: What if my project doesn't have easily quantifiable metrics?
    A: Propose a mix of qualitative and quantitative metrics (e.g., surveys, user engagement data, community feedback) to evaluate the project's success.

Risks

Q: How do I identify potential risks?
    A: Consider potential technical challenges, community concerns, or unexpected delays. For each risk, assess its likelihood, impact, and mitigation strategies.

Conflict of Interest

Q: What kind of conflicts should I disclose?
    A: Be transparent about any financial ties, relationships, or affiliations that could influence your judgment or the project's outcome.

Recommendations

Q: How can I get recommendations?
    A: Seek endorsements from respected members of the OpenStreetMap community familiar with your project's potential benefits. Include links to testimonials or endorsements in your proposal.