Deadline: 12 February 2019

European Commission is inviting applications for “Civil SocietyEmpowerment Programme” to address the sharp rise in extremists and terrorists use of the internet.

The Objective is to support the production of alternative/counter-narratives, in particular online, their dissemination and monitoring by civil society organisations, and the evaluation of their impact.

Priorities Area

• The goal of this Call for Proposals is to support projects of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) that pursue all of the objectives below:
  • address target audiences in the EU susceptible and vulnerable to radicalising and terrorist content online , those on the brink of radicalisation as well as those who have already been radicalised (target audiences’ perceived or real grievances should be addressed);
  • provide the well-defined target audience with credible alternatives and positive narratives or expose and challenge terrorist and extremist online propaganda ;
  • address push and pull factors of terrorist and extremist content online;
  • actively contribute to promoting tolerance and EU/democratic fundamental rights and values;
  • empower civil society organisations, grass root organisations and other credible voices.
• The projects, implementing effective alternative and counter-narrative campaigns online, should contribute to:
  • bringing about behaviour change dissuading the target audience from promoting terrorism and violent extremism and/or using violence;
  • growing civic engagement and taking active stance in democratic processes by target audiences;
  • halting radicalisation and recruitment processes;
  • enhancing (digital) resilience and critical thinking of the target audience against terrorist and extremist propaganda on-and offline.
• The projects shall contribute to the overall Civil Society Empowerment Programme by:
  • strengthening multi-stakeholder cooperation between civil society organisations particularly local/grass-root ones, researchers, Internet companies, creative and communication companies and where relevant other stakeholders, such as public authorities, in the area of alternative and counter narratives preventing radicalisation and violent extremism online;
  • encouraging use of online reporting channels and tools.

Budget Information

The total budget earmarked for the co-financing of projects is estimated at EUR 4 000 000.

Eligibility Criteria

• In order to be eligible for a grant, the Applicant and the Co-applicants must be:
  • legal persons; applications from natural persons are not eligible;
  • public bodies or private entities ;
  • established in a Member State of the European Union participating in the ISF Police instrument. In duly justified cases where their participation is necessary to achieve the objectives of the programme, the Co-applicants may also be established in a third country. For this call, eligible third countries are those highlighted as priority countries in the European Agenda on Security: Turkey, Tunisia, Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, countries in the Western Balkans as well as EFTA countries;
• In order to be eligible for a grant, applications must be:
  • submitted by a consortium of at least three entities;
  • seeking EU co-funding equal to or more than EUR 250.000 and equal to or less than EUR 1.000.000;
  • activities must not have started prior to the date of submission of the grant application.
• International organisation can be neither Applicants nor Co-applicants
• Union agencies can be neither Applicants nor Co-applicants.
• Affiliated entities, i.e. legal entities having a legal or capital link with Applicants, shall take part in the action as individual Co-applicants in order to declare eligible costs.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted via given website.

For more information, please visit Civil Society Empowerment Programme.