UMCOR grantees must agree to implement programs and services in a manner consistent with UMCOR’s mission and values, and protection principles and minimum standards for the humanitarian sector.

All UMCOR-funded partners take steps to ensure their actions:

• Preserve the dignity of persons without regard to religion, race, nationality, or gender, and seek to enhance the quality of life in the human community. The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church, 2016.
• Do not bring further harm to affected people (Protection Principle 1), that their activities benefit in particular those who are most affected and vulnerable (Protection Principle 2), that they contribute to protecting affected people from violence and other human rights abuses (Protection Principle 3) and that they help affected people recover from abuses (Protection Principle 4). Protection Principles, www.SphereProject.org, Copyright @ The Sphere Project, 2011

UMCOR’s core values of equality and justice, respect with dignity, and good stewardship are reflected in UMCOR’s grant-making priorities. Funded projects generally meet the following criteria:

• The project proposes to identify, advocate for, and assist those persons (beneficiaries) who are among the most vulnerable to the effects of disaster. Beneficiaries may be adults, children, families and/or households affected by disaster.
• The project is designed to promote equitable access to needs-based resources via culturally competent approaches. 
• The project seeks to establish mechanisms for service delivery of direct services and resources, especially via volunteers, and to assist faith- based organizations and churches, particularly United Methodist organizations, to become involved in direct ministry to persons people in need through programs of readiness, relief and recovery. 

Purpose: Disaster preparedness is important to building resilience by promoting a culture of prevention and preparation, and by “building back better” in recovery. These proposals may include projects that demonstrate capacity building for an effective response on behalf of The United Methodist Church that meet one or more of the following goals:

• The United Methodist connectional network is better prepared to prevent, minimize, and/or manage a timely response to people who have experienced disaster-caused loss or harm, whether to lives, livelihoods, property, safety and security, and/or health and well-being.
• Vulnerable individuals, families, and communities have increased resiliency so that they are better prepared to prevent, minimize, or cope with disaster-caused loss.

Activities: Examples include but are not limited to education, training, material supplies, and structural mitigation, with clear metrics for measuring and reporting outcomes.

Duration: Grants typically do not exceed 12 months.

Award amount: The approved award will be dependent upon the availability of funds and other factors. These types of grants must be cost-effective; the award amount is variable.

Purpose: Relief grants serve the purpose of addressing basic humanitarian needs in the early stages of disaster response.

Activities: Examples include but are not limited to food supplies, safe and secure housing, volunteer coordination and support, material supplies, outreach, information and referral, spiritual and emotional care-giving, preliminary damage assessment, and casework.

Duration: Relief grants are to be implemented and closed out within three to six months.

Award amount: The approved award will be dependent upon the availability of funds and other factors. USDR and IDR relief grants are generally less than $10,000 although additional funds may be offered when the scope and scale of the emergency warrants.

Purpose: Recovery grants support the project in achieving disaster recovery goals of adults, children, families, and/or households affected by disaster.

Activities: Recovery project are the most complex, due in part to the wide range of functions and supporting activities necessary in this phase. Primary functions may include (but not be limited to) disaster case management, construction management, volunteer management, material resource management, financial management, and administration. Engaging in community-based partnerships for resource -sharing and coordination as another activity to help meet recovery goals of individuals and families.

Duration: Recovery grants are usually implemented in time periods of six months to two years, or longer.

Award maximum: The approved award will be dependent upon the availability of funds and other factors.

Purpose: Migration grants support projects that seek to alleviate physical and emotional suffering of vulnerable, migrating individuals and families. Projects support the right to stay, right to safe passage, right to welcoming and belonging, and right to support for the returned.

Activities: Examples include (but are not limited to): provision of basic human needs and transitional services; provision of temporary lodging; translation services; and reunification.

Duration: Variable.

Award amount: The approved award will be dependent upon the availability of funds and other factors.