Request for Proposal Innovative Advocacy Seed Grant
Purpose of Consultancy/Activity: Innovative Advocacy Seed Grant support under TRANScend.
Project: Owner The Humsafar Trust, Mumbai
Starting Date for Submission: 19th August 2026
Last Date of Submission: 31st August 2026
About the Organisation: The Humsafar Trust (HST) is a community-based organisation (CBO) working on health and human rights of LGBTQ+ people since 1994. Through targeted HIV interventions, we currently reach out to 7,500+ gay-identified Men Having Sex with Men (MSM) and TG/Hijra communities in Mumbai every year through our outreach work at physical sites and 9,000+ users through social media and online programmes. We also undertake advocacy activities focused on LGBTQ+ rights, including sensitising and raising awareness among employers, educational institutes, law enforcement agencies, and government bodies, staging and reading of LGBTQ+-themed plays, organising activities, and mobilising the community around LGBTQ+-focused events like Pride marches, International Day against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), and World AIDS Day. We build the capacities of community-based organisations in 27 Indian states on HIV prevention, treatment, care & support, and advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights. Kindly refer to the website https://humsafar.org/ for more details about the organisation.
Purpose: Create and continue LGBTQ+ conversations in the form of direct or soft advocacy with an intention to create socio-economic inclusion of LGBTQ+ and transgender persons in India.
The TRANScend Project: TRANScend is an initiative by The Humsafar Trust which aims to enhance socio-economic inclusion of transgender persons in India. TRANScend, as an initiative, is committed to encouraging greater community ownership, facilitating partnerships between the community and various stakeholders such as corporates, educational institutions, the judiciary, and bureaucrats; and facilitating a platform to address the ever-evolving needs of the transgender community through ongoing research and interventions. This project is also focused on enhancing the economic resilience of transgender persons in India.
Priority Areas:
Proposals should focus on advocacy activities that promote transgender/Hijra inclusion across
education, the workplace, and community spaces, addressing one or more of the following areas:
a) Equal access to housing, education, public facilities and employment opportunities.
b) With the welfare department to access transgender identity card for transgender persons.
c) Anti-discrimination laws and policies protecting transgender persons
d) Parental & social acceptance.
e) Educational or medical institutions
f) State & Central Government institutions
g) Livelihood support
h) Financial literacy
i) Visibility events focused on socio-economic inclusion.
j) Visual arts-focused awareness programmes.
k) Creation of IEC material (print, audio-visual) focused on health and human rights of the transgender community
l) Any other awareness, capacity-building, upskilling effort focused on the transgender community
Deliverables:
· The activities should be implemented between 28th September 2026 and 30th November 2026.
· 50% will be paid in advance, and 50% will be paid upon submission of the programmatic reports and the statement of expenditures, along with the original bills. No activities or expenses will be allowed after the mentioned period.
Activity Amount: A maximum of INR 30,000/- (Rupees Thirty Thousand Only) will be granted for the activities, with the actual amount based on the proposed activities budget.
Eligibility to Apply: This one-time grant will be open to registered CBOs, informal community initiatives/groups, or leaders. The applicant must submit a one-page proposal mentioning the background and need for the project, proposed activities, budget for the activity, and means to measure success/outcome, along with a registration copy and PAN copy in the case of registered CBOs and PAN & Aadhaar copy of the activity holder in the case of informal community initiatives/groups or leaders. Innovative activities and ideas that address the most pressing needs of the transgender community and support the sustainability of community-led organisations will be given preference.
The soft copy of the proposal forms & budget should be submitted to nilofer@humsafar.org by 12 PM on 31st August 2026.
In case of any queries, please write to: nilofer@humsafar.org or call at +91-9076060069