Q: Are there preferred outcomes, deliverables, or products that the Heritage Trust Project hopes to see produced by grant recipients? Virtual exhibits? Websites? CDs of images?
A: Grants will be awarded primarily on the basis of a project's promise to both protect and enhance public access to the treasures of our global information heritage. Generally speaking, universal access on the Web is preferable to making a CD available. Free access is preferable to paid access.

Q: Do the grants cover only digitization projects, or may some of the funds be used for preservation of original materials?
A: Funds may be used for preservation of original materials after they've been digitized. However, funding to help with digitization-for both preservation and access-is the primary goal of the Heritage Trust Project grant program.

Q: Are there rules concerning how awarded funds must be allocated?
A: Funds must be allocated for the purposes outlined in your request. Providing funds to help with digitization-for both preservation and access-is the primary goal of the Heritage Trust Project grant program. Grant funds may be applied toward purchasing hardware, software, staffing, acid-free containers for post-digitization storage-or any other purpose that, in the eyes of the judges, serves the larger goal of preserving our Information Heritage.

Q: What do you consider a fraternal organization?
A: For the purposes of the grant program, we use the Wikipedia definition of fraternal organization. "Groups that exclude members on the basis of sex, race, color, creed, religious, or sexual orientation" are not eligible for funding.

Q: Is a museum for a Catholic religious congregation eligible?
A: Not if the museum is only for the members of the religious congregation. On the other hand, a museum funded by a Catholic congregation-but open to the general public and housing artifacts of universal cultural significance-may be eligible for funding.

Q: If a local digitization project is funded by an EMC cash grant, would EMC require ownership of the copyright to the images produced?
A: No.

Q: Are there any other copyright-related considerations associated with the grant program?
A: No.

Q: Does an organization need to be a 501(c)(3) as with EMC's usual corporate giving program?
A: No. The decisions of the judges, however, will be heavily affected by the organization's commitment to digitization for both preservation and enhanced public access.

Q: Would a 501(c)(9) be eligible to apply?
A: Yes, if the voluntary employee beneficiary association could make the case for digitization for preservation and enhanced public access to cultural artifacts of general interest.

Q: Will the program be repeated in the next fiscal year if an organization is unable to submit by the November 30, 2008 deadline?
A: Given the importance of digitizing as much of the world's information heritage as soon as possible—we encourage all applicants to apply as quickly as possible.

Q: What is the available funding for this cycle?
A: This is yet to be determined.

Q: What will be the geographic distribution of grants?
A: Applications from all countries will be considered on an equal footing.

Q: Do we apply through EMC's U.S. offices, or may we apply through offices in any country?
A: Please e-mail your application to: heritage_trust@emc.com in the form of a Microsoft Word or plain text document.