SAFE Media Capacity Support Grants

The Support and Assistance for Free Expression (SAFE) project was created to strengthen the independent journalism sector in the face of systemic threats. This initiative helps media workers adapt to difficult working conditions, minimize risks to their lives and health, and maintain the ability to create high-quality and objective content. The program focuses on creating conditions under which editorial offices can effectively withstand external pressure, maintaining their independence and continuing to perform the function of public oversight.

In addition to direct financial support for educational events, the global ecosystem of the SAFE project serves as a comprehensive platform for the protection of media workers. It covers a wide range of emergency tools designed to respond promptly to critical situations that journalists face while performing their professional duties, ranging from urgent relocation and provision of basic needs to specialized insurance and technical equipment.

This call is open to journalists and media workers at independent outlets from the Eastern Partnership region (EaP). Basic requirements for applicants:

• Editorial teams must pursue a clear public interest mission.
• Applicants must have limited access to other sources of support.

Priority during selection is given to:

1. Media operating in hostile or restrictive environments: Outlets across the Eastern Partnership region facing significant financial, logistical, legal, or security challenges.
2. Frontline and high-risk zones (relevant only for Ukraine): Regional, local, hyperlocal media, small and medium-sized national media outlets operating in frontline areas or relocated from temporarily occupied territories, as well as journalists and fixers regularly working in high-risk zones.

• Grant amount: Up to €5,000 per training programme.
• Direction of expenses: Funds are provided to finance training programmes that enhance journalistic reporting and the resilience of independent media under high-risk conditions. Grants can also be used to fund training for individual members of the editorial team.
• Additional support within the SAFE project: Although the current call specifically concerns training grants, the SAFE project itself also offers emergency grants for independent media and journalists, covers short-term residencies, equipment support, insurance for journalists on the front lines, and provides special support for women journalists.

Training programmes must target primarily media workers affiliated with the applying media outlet. Eligible topics for training include, but are not limited to, the following areas:

• Mental health.
• Physical safety.
• Digital security.
• Journalistic and editorial skills enhancement.
• Capacity building aimed at improving the outlet’s operational capacity.

• 30 September 2026: Deadline for submitting applications (Open call deadline).
• Within 30 days after the deadline: Notification of results to successful applicants.
• Before 30 December 2026: The period by which all supported training programmes must be fully conducted and completed.
• By 15 January 2027: The final deadline for submitting the report to ECPMF.

• You must visit the organizer's page and fill in the online application form.
• To be considered for the grant, the applicant must download a special template provided by the organizer.
• This template must be filled in and attached to the application form before submission.
• In the proposal application, applicants must detail the purpose, budget, relevance of the training, and information about the media outlet.

After an initial eligibility screening, the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) will evaluate applications based on the following criteria:

• Urgency: How critical and time-sensitive the training is in addressing the immediate needs of journalists.
• Relevance: How well the proposal addresses the specific needs of journalists.
• Feasibility: Practicality and achievability of the proposed budget and implementation plan.
• Impact: The training’s potential to improve reporting quality and media resilience.
• Sustainability: The training’s lasting (long-term) impact.

The selection process also necessarily takes into account the risks and working conditions journalists face in their day-to-day work.

• A Proposal form / Application form, which must include:
• • Basic information about the applying media outlet.
  • The purpose of the grant, including the training’s objectives and expected impact.
  • Justification of the relevance of the proposed training.
  • A budget, including a detailed breakdown of costs for the proposed training.
• A filled-in Template, which must be downloaded from the website, filled in, and attached directly to the application form.

• Grant Agreement: Selected applicants will sign a Grant Agreement outlining the terms and conditions of the grant, including detailed reporting requirements.
• Final report: A report must be submitted to ECPMF no later than January 15, 2027.
• Report content: The report must detail the training outcomes, financial expenditure (financial report), and the overall impact of the project.

• Conclusion of a grant agreement: Selected applicants must sign an official Grant Agreement with the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF), which establishes the rights, obligations of the parties, terms of payment and use of funds, as well as reporting regulations.
• Targeted use and timeframes: Funds must be used exclusively for the implementation of the approved training programme, which must take place and be completed before 30 December 2026.
• Applicant status requirements: Participation is open to journalists and media workers at independent outlets whose editorial teams strictly pursue a clear public interest mission and who have limited access to other sources of funding or donor support.
• Restrictions on the training audience: Training programmes must target primarily media workers directly affiliated with the applying media outlet (funding is allowed for the training of both the entire team and individual members of the editorial team).
• Reporting obligations: A legally binding condition for fulfilling the agreement is the timely submission of a report by 15 January 2027, detailing the training outcomes, documentary evidence of financial expenditure, and an assessment of the impact achieved.
• Institutional subordination: The programme is implemented by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) under the Hannah Arendt Initiative and is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, which implies compliance with the donor's requirements for transparency and the proper use of funds.