Interested in applying for funding? Attend a virtual information session on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 6–7 p.m. where applicants can learn about the program and process to apply. Pre-registration is required.
Request for Proposals
The City of Bellevue is accepting applications for funding through the Cross-Cultural Center Without Walls program Monday, Sept. 15, to Wednesday, Oct. 15. Funding levels will range between $2,500 - $15,000 for cross-cultural programming held between January and December 2026.
More information, including project requirements and instructions for submitting a proposal, can be found in the Cross-Cultural Center without Walls Request for Proposals Packet.
About the Cross-Cultural Center without Walls
The city researched for several years the development of a facility to support community members from diverse cultures and backgrounds learning from each other and building relationships. While a new, stand-alone facility could take years to plan and finance, and is not part of the city’s short-term plans, the city is creating cross-cultural programming in partnership with a variety of partners — the Cross-Cultural Center Without Walls.
The Cross-Cultural Center pilot program offers funding for local organizations to host events or workshops that bring people from different backgrounds together around shared intercultural experiences. The experiences are designed around active intercultural cross-cultural engagement, learning and exchange, and occur in different locations around Bellevue.
Funded Organizations (2024-2025)
Nineteen local organizations received funding for events held between May 2024 and May 2025. Together, these organizations hosted 60 diverse cross-cultural events that engaged over 4,000 people.
- Africans on the Eastside
- Eastside for All
- Open Doors for Multicultural Families
- Kin On
- Indian American Community Services
- Immigrant Women's Community Center
- Congolese Integration Network
- Friends of Bellevue Cross-Cultural Center
- Fiesta del Maiz Planning Committee
- Bellevue Arts Museum
- Global Artists Collective
- YeFine Arts
- The Circle
- Puesta del Sol Elementary PTA
- Hopelink
- VCBynum Arts & Education
- Chinese Autism Resources and Empowerment Services
- Pride Across the Bridge
- Pacific Ukrainian Society
Get Involved
The best way to get involved in this project is to attend one of the cross-cultural events or activities hosted by our partnering organizations! Information on upcoming events is shared on the right side of this screen.
While the city was only able to fund a fraction of the many wonderful cross-cultural project ideas submitted to us, another focus of this project is to help build connections across people and organizations interested in building a cross-cultural Bellevue. We have created a directory of people and organizations in our community who provide programming and services related to cross-cultural engagement that we encourage people to take a look at. See someone doing something you want to learn more about? Reach out and introduce yourself!
Summary of Past Community Engagement and Studies
The 2014 Diversity Advantage Plan envisioned a cross-cultural facility with a mission to “educate, celebrate, challenge and inspire Bellevue to be a welcoming and inclusive community that embraces diversity.”
In 2016, the City Council approved a series of studies to assess the need for cross-cultural programming in Bellevue and explore the feasibility of a cross-cultural center.
- Shaping our Inclusive Future: Cross-Cultural Programming Public Outreach Study (October 2018)
- Cross-Cultural Feasibility Assessment (November 2020)
- Cross-Cultural Feasibility Study Phase 3 Report (May 2022)
The studies, which involved considerable outreach, reflected the thinking and experience of hundreds of diverse Bellevue residents, and concluded there was a strong demand and need for more cross-cultural engagement opportunities. Furthermore, the studies concluded that this project would need to be community-led, possibly by a local nonprofit organization, and city-supported.
In 2022, the council directed staff to move forward with the development of the Cross-Cultural Center without Walls project and to explore possible nonprofit partners. Funding for the effort was included in the city's 2023-24 budget.
Community members joined in the planning of the Cross-Cultural Center Without Walls during three workshops held in the fall of 2023. At the first, on Sept. 19, 2023, participants contributed ideas for activities and programs they would like to experience at the traveling center. Participants at the second workshop held in October identified ideas and themes they believed are most important for the project.
At the third and final workshop on Dec. 6, 2023, the city shared the summary of findings from the first two workshops and included key ideas for the project generated from over 125 participants. Staff also shared information on how to submit a proposal for a cross-cultural project to the city for possible funding opportunities.