Grants - Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Is there a maximum grant size that can be awarded?

A. There is no set maximum, but grants are awarded with consideration for the annual PSF grant budget and that events/sprints will be virtual. We will be taking into consideration the components the event/projects need and with that in mind are willing to consider up to $2,500 per request for larger virtual events and as little as $200 for smaller initiatives. The Foundation reserves the right to make a grant smaller than the total you request. If a smaller grant amount will not be acceptable, you should state such in the application.

Q. Will the PSF fund grant requests for Python sprints?

A. Yes, the PSF will consider grants for Python-related sprints. Please provide information about focus and goal of the sprint in your application, as well as the number of expected participants. And don’t forget to include some photos in your grant follow-up so that we can tweet about your sprint :-) The amount will depend on the needs of the sprint, how much impact the work will have and how many people will be partaking in the sprint.

Q. Will the PSF fund swag?

A. We prefer to not fund swag.

Q. Is there anything I need to know about fund disbursements?

A. The PSF offers various payment methods. If your grant request is approved, specific information will be requested in the email notification. Please see our Payment Options page (</psf/paymentoptions/>) for more information.

Q. Are there any countries or people that can’t receive grants from the PSF?

A. The Office of Foreign Assets and Control (OFAC) publishes lists of individuals and companies owned or controlled by, or acting for or on behalf of, targeted countries. The US government prohibits US citizens, US-based entities and US branches of foreign companies from doing business with countries or parties on these lists. The lists include individuals, groups, and entities, such as terrorists and narcotics traffickers designated under programs that are not country-specific. The Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list contains names of individuals, banks, businesses, etc. that have been blocked from doing business in the US. OFAC lists change often and are published on OFAC’s site.

The Python Software Foundation complies with OFAC regulations to avoid both civil and criminal penalties. Before the PSF accounting team adds new vendors to its system, the PSF checks the OFAC lists to confirm that the new vendor is compliant. Non-compliant vendors will not be issued reimbursements, grants, or other payments.

Q. Are there any restrictions on how I describe receiving a grant from the PSF?

A. Yes, there are. Specifically, the PSF awarding a grant to support a community activity is not the same as formally endorsing a particular project or commercial offering in any capacity, and should not be represented as such. This can be readily achieved by sticking to phrasing like “We have received funding from the PSF” or “This event was sponsored by the PSF”.

Q. Will the PSF fund grant requests for Python User Group (PUG) website hosting costs?

A. The Python Software Foundation (PSF) covers website hosting costs for approved fiscal sponsored Python User Groups or events.

If you are developing a hosting or event advertising plan for your PUG, please research the following open source options before applying for a grant:

1. Oregon State University’s Open Source Lab (OSU OSL) hosting services: the PSF has a partnership with OSU OSL for website and server hosting for free or discounted for open source-affiliated projects.
2. Read the Docs is a free platform for creating, hosting, and browsing documentation online.
3. CiviCRM is a free, open source, web-based, internationalized relationship management and event management platform.

Q. Does the PSF issue grants for event-subscription sites like Meetup?

A. Yes. The PSF hosts over 96 groups in 31 countries via our Meetup Pro Network (https://www.meetup.com/pro/python-software-foundation-meetups) as long as 3 conditions are met:

1. The Meetup holds at least 2 events per calendar year (virtual or in-person).
2. Event content focuses on Python content at least 70% of the time. Content may include adjacent topics, such as networking, basic machine learning, etc.
3. Please include a link to or full text of the group’s code of conduct in the About section of the group’s Meetup site to become and stay eligible for reimbursement and the PSF Meetup Pro network.

If your group is a fiscal sponsoree of the PSF, reimbursements of meetup subscriptions are not charged against the fiscal sponsoree’s fund balance.

Here is a sample proposal:

• Grant Proposal: $180 to cover the cost of the Boston Python user group’s meetup.com subscription for 12 months: January through December of 2023.
• Grant Objective: meetup.com helps to increase the visibility of the user group, as well as boost attendance through automated reminders, RSVP functionality, and other tools. It also makes organizing and promoting the group easier, as well as providing a platform to garner sponsorships and thank sponsors publicly.
• Grant Size: $180 total, which is the cost of 12 months to organize a group on meetup.com.
• Grant Beneficiaries: The Boston Python user group has over 1500 members on meetup.com. We have had monthly meetings since before 2007 and have an average attendance of 60-100 Python programmers. meetup.com provides a centralized location where our members see what’s coming up and who has RSVPed for the meeting.
• Preferred method of funds delivery: A deposit into the PayPal account for meetup@bostonpython.com.

Q. When should I submit my grant request?

A. We ask that grant requests be submitted at least 6 weeks before the funding is needed - this gives us enough time to thoroughly review, ask questions, and have enough time to send you the funds. We will not accept grants that are submitted within 20 days of the event/project start date.

Q. Can we use your logo or a similar logo? How should we use the words “Python” or “PyCon” which are trademarked?

A. Please read our Trademark policy . This covers the Python logo or any similar logos and the use of the words “Python” or “PyCon” and how you should proceed. if you have any doubts about your intended use of the trademarks, please contact the PSF Trademarks Committee.

Q. How should we report after the event/project?

A. The PSF has a policy that requires all grant recipients to submit reports. These reports are useful for us to gauge the impact we are having and how the event went. For subsequent events, we require past reports in order to consider further requests. Workshops: If there were different organizers working on the previous event in your area, it is your responsibility to reach out to them to ensure a report was filed. Python conferences: If there were different organizers/or a different conference chair running the conference the previous year, please contact them to make sure a report was submitted before you submit your new grant request. This is the form grant recipients should use to submit post-event/project reports.

Q. Once my grant is approved, how long does it take to receive funds?

A. After you receive a notification with the amount of funding the PSF approved for your grant request and you submit an invoice, payment will be processed within 7 business days and the Controller will notify you when the payment has been sent. We sometimes run into issues when sending funding internationally so that is why we ask to receive grant requests 6 weeks out.

Q. Will the human rights legislation in my country be taken into account when the PSF chooses whether or not to fund my event?

A. No, we will not consider local human rights legislation in our decision-making process for community-run events. The PSF can not send money to countries under US sanction and we do still expect a regionally appropriate, robust, and enforceable Code of Conduct.

More information is available on our grants page .