The Global Citizen/PayPal Small Business Impact Awards celebrates entrepreneurs and small business owners who are driving real impact in their communities by demonstrating a deep commitment to equity and sustainability in their business practices. The award will highlight innovative leaders of small business and social enterprises who have developed products and services that make a positive social or environmental impact.

Each winner (five) will win $25,000 and a free Masterclass training with Global Citizen's Marketing and Social Teams.

Candidates will be judged against set criteria by a group of Global Citizen and independent experts.

Up to fifteen (15) finalists will be selected on or around September 22nd and will be required to submit three (3) letters of recommendation. If applying for the Prize, you should have your letters of recommendation ready for submission. Additional supplemental information might also be requested of finalists.

If selected as one of the 15 finalists, you will be judged by a panel of representatives from Global Citizen and independent experts. 

The business must be registered as a small-to-medium-sized business, typically with fewer than 50 full-time employees or annual revenue under $1 million (subject to local regulations and standards)

Yes, we are looking for a transformative leader who is playing a key role in the business. This can be a CEO, owner or (co-)founder as long as you are still actively involved with the business. 

In your application, you will be asked for the title of your role in the organization to help us understand how you are having an impact.

We accept applications from all over the world, with the exception of countries and entities subject to financial or other sanctions by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) or other government entities of the United States of America that may restrict the transfer of the Prize money. 

No, we are looking for individuals leading businesses, who are doing impactful work and who have a registered legal entity such as for-profit, B-corp, social enterprise, etc. 

The Prize will be accepted by an individual on behalf of the business, and the money will be allocated to the business that the individual works for. 

We are glad you are passionate about making a difference in the global community. However, this Award is for individuals who have a demonstrated impact over the last 3-5 years so this may not be right for you. 

The application consists of four parts: (1) About you & about your business, (2) Pitch (3) Description of how your work aligns with the judging criteria (4) Supplemental organizational details (upon request)

For the first part, you will be required to submit basic information about you and your business.

For the second part, you must explain why you deserve this award and provide us with a 1-2 minute video of your pitch. 

For the third part, you will be required to answer four short answer questions about your work. In 250 words or less, you will describe how you meet each one of the Awards’ criteria.

Applications open for submission at 10:00amPST Thursday, June 26th, 2025  and close at 17:00pm Friday, August15th, 2025.

Up to 15 finalists will be notified on or around September 22nd, 2025.

If you are selected as one of the 15 finalists you will be contacted on or around September 22nd, 2025 to submit 3 letters of recommendation:

3 Letters of recommendation should include: 

• A Colleague 
• A Funder or Operational Partner 
• Person you’ve impacted 

Once you apply for the Award, you should have your letters of recommendation ready for submission. Supplemental information might also be requested of finalists. Finalists who are contacted and cannot provide letters of recommendation and supplemental information by the deadline may be removed from further consideration. 

If selected as a finalist, you will be provided with instructions on how to submit your letters of recommendation and supplemental information. 
In addition, shortlisted applicants may be required to provide their business’s registration details, including one or more of: the certificate of registration, certificate of incorporation, certificate of tax exemption (pdf only), annual report and/or business plan; please be prepared to provide this information. 

You should provide a letter or video of endorsement from each one of the following: 

• A colleague 
• A funder or operational partner 
• A person you’ve impacted 

Letters should have an official letterhead and original signature.  

Endorsements don’t need to be new / given specifically for this Award, but we do ask that they are less than six months old. 

No, applicants must apply for the Award themselves. 

Unfortunately, at this time we are only able to accept applications in English. 

You are welcome to draft your application in another language and send us a translation. We are judging you on the criteria, not your writing. 

All application submissions will be reviewed against Award criteria: “Innovation,” “Impact,” “Vision,” and “Grit” 

No. Award money is unconditional. However, we do ask applicants for an idea of how they plan to use the money and require the winner to provide quarterly written updates on their organization’s progress for a period of 1 year. 

Your application must include a 1-2 minute video of your pitch, convincing us why you should be awarded this prize. Feel free to shoot the video on your phone, camera, or other recording device, as long as the video can be uploaded to YouTube. Once you have filmed your video, you must provide a link to the YouTube video- remember to make the link unrestricted. 

Applications without a video pitch will not be accepted. 

No, all applications are considered final. 

Please email paypal@globalcitizen.org 

If you have any questions that are not answered on the award’s information page or in these FAQs, please email paypal@globalcitizen.org. Regretfully we will only be able to respond to questions not answered here. 

Global Citizen is an action platform dedicated to achieving the end of extreme poverty. By taking action with us, Global Citizens earn rewards, such as tickets to events and digital experiences with artists and influencers. Policy-makers make commitments to achieve the end of extreme poverty on our platform and we hold them accountable. So far, we’ve inspired 49.2 million actions since 2009. Today, these actions, in combination with high-level advocacy work, have led to over $49 billion being distributed to our partners around the world, impacting 1.3 billion lives in the fight to end extreme poverty. Together we can defeat poverty and defend the planet. 

PayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. PayPal’s core values include Inclusion, Innovation, Collaboration, and Wellness.