GlobalSkin Rare Disease Day Fund 2026

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The GlobalSkin Rare Disease Day Fund provides financial support to Member organizations to help them carry out impactful advocacy initiatives for Rare Disease Day. 

Grant Guidelines 

Application Intake: December 8–15, 2025 

GlobalSkin will review all submissions and approve 15 applications for the 2026 Rare Disease Day Fund. Successful applicants will be notified by Friday, January 9, 2026. 

We welcome applications from all Full and Associate Member organizations. 

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Proposals that fall into one or both of the following categories can be funded up to $500 CAD. 

Marketing 

Grants funded in this category will support the development and/or purchase of marketing materials that raise awareness of the activities you have planned for Rare Disease Day. Examples of activities that could be funded include paid social media, traditional media buying, graphic design, and printing materials such as flyers or brochures. 

Event Planning 

Grants funded in this category will support hosting activities related to Rare Disease Day. Activities can include virtual and in-person events. Examples of activities that could be funded include webinars, ask-the-expert sessions, e-learning opportunities, and town hall events. Funds can be used towards the cost of using online meeting/presentation platforms or in-person events.    

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Terms and Conditions 

  1. Applications must be submitted by 11:59 pm EST on Monday, December 15, 2025. 
  2. All applicants will receive GlobalSkin's funding decision by Friday, January 9, 2026. 
  3. GlobalSkin will review and approve or decline all applications. All funding decisions are final. 
  4. GlobalSkin will review and approve 15 applications for this Fund.  
  5. Organizations must be transparent when using AI in writing a grant application. The use of AI will not positively or negatively affect the review of the application. 
  6. Only one application per GlobalSkin Member organization will be funded in 2026.  
  7. This fund offers reimbursement grants to be paid after Rare Disease Day 2026. 

Application Criteria

  1. Applicant is a GlobalSkin Full or Associate Member (Affiliate Members do not qualify to apply to the GlobalSkin Rare Disease Day Fund as they are not patient-led dermatology organizations). 
  2. Applicant is a GlobalSkin Member that supports patients living with a rare skin disease. 
  3. Project aligns with Rare Disease Day Fund categories. 
  4. Project raises awareness and builds community.  
  5. Project reporting must be submitted following the completion of your project to receive funding. 
  6. Project does not violate any of the exclusions outlined below. 

Exclusions

  1. Funds may not be used to pay for meals for health care providers or policy makers. 
  2. Funds may not be used to provide honoraria or any other type of payment to health care providers or policy makers. 
  3. Funds may not be used to purchase alcohol. 
  4. Funds may not be used to cover costs of travel for individuals but may be used to support the attendance of patient community members to in-person events hosted by your Member organization. 
  5. Funds may not be used for items for which a receipt cannot be issued. 

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Reporting

If your proposal is funded, we will need to see evidence of how you used your funds before distributing reimbursement. Within two weeks of Rare Disease Day, we will ask you to provide us:  

  1. A Grant Payment Form (template provided by GlobalSkin) totalling the pre-approved grant amount. 
  2. A completed Rare Disease Day Report Form (provided by GlobalSkin). This report will include, but is not limited to:  
  • A short narrative summary of how the funds were spent. 
  • Images of how the funds were used (e.g., screenshots of social media, advertising materials, YouTube video, etc.). 
  • Data showing event impact on your patient community (number of participants, social media reach etc.). 

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GlobalSkin has a wide reaching and diverse membership, and we recognize the unique financial challenges faced by Members in lower-middle to low-income countries (as defined by the United Nations). To be inclusive and equitable in our programming, GlobalSkin may opt to award funds during the implementation of an approved project for Members living in these identified countries. More details will be available to these Members during the application process.  

If you have any questions regarding the GlobalSkin Rare Disease Day Fund, please contact Toni Roberts, Special Programs Advisor, at toni.roberts@globalskin.org 

Thank you to our Rare Disease Day Fund Partners; AbbVie, Amgen-Kyowa Kirin, and Boehringer Ingelheim. 

*Please note - you will need to create a Submittable account to apply* 

We use Submittable to accept and review our submissions.
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