European Local Cross-Border Grants Programme

• Eligibility Criteria
  – Local Cross-Border investigative teams of at least two journalists and/or media outlets can submit a proposal for local journalistic investigations in Europe;
  – This grant programme is open to local journalists/media outlets domiciled in at least two different countries;
  – The applicants must be professional freelance journalists and/or media outlets;
  – The investigation proposal must concern local cross-border investigative journalism;
  – Investigative journalism published by professional local media in any form is eligible, no matter whether print, online, broadcast or cross-media;
  – The result of the investigation must be published by at least two professional media outlets in at least two different European countries;
• Type of Funding: Programmatic
• Target Region: Europe, Global
• Application Language: English

The European Local Cross-Border Grants Programme aims at addressing the shortage of local independent journalism by administering grants to local investigative journalistic projects in Europe and stimulating cross-border collaboration.

This programme will:

• Stimulate local journalists and (small) news outlets to conduct investigative journalism and learn from colleagues in other countries, creating a European network of local (investigative) journalists in the long run.
• Stimulate local journalists and news outlets to compare with other regions and cities in other countries that face similar problems or challenges, which are eminently European issues.
• Increase the dissemination, reach and impact of local investigative journalism.
• The grant programme will be open for teams of local investigative journalists and/or local media outlets from at least two different European countries who have good ideas for a local cross-border investigation.
• The project should be one that, in principle, could not be realised in this format within the remit of regular journalism – a project that can include cross-border research, networking between colleagues, established and innovative investigative methods and that is at the same time original, innovative and intensive.

The project should be one that, in principle, could not be realised in this format within the remit of regular journalism – a project that can include cross-border research, networking between colleagues, established and innovative investigative methods and that is at the same time original, innovative and intensive.

For who?

Local Cross-border teams of at least two professional journalists and/or (local) news outlets can submit a proposal for a journalistic investigation about any issues that concern and relate to Europe. At least 80% of the requested budget must go to journalists/media from EU countries.

Funding Information

In 2024, the total grant budget is €475,000 to distribute over four application rounds. For the next deadline, they have €209,000 to distribute.

See here to learn more and apply.

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