Thank you for your enthusiastic responses to the new GFMD Fundraising Resource Centre – looks like we hit the sweet spot with this initiative! 

Many of our readers have asked that we provide examples to illustrate the various processes, situations and donor exchanges that applicants experience but we can only do so with your help. Please use the feedback section of the fundraising guide to share your own stories - successes, failures, challenges and dead-ends. (If you wish, you can share them anonymously.)

We believe that by sharing knowledge and experiences we can all learn something. And do let us know what else you would like to see covered in the fundraising guide or resource centre! 

Pick me! Pick me! 

Get tips on how to convince a funder that you are their best bet if they want to see change/progress/results in the area that they are funding in Module 2 on Competitive Advantages.

Navigating the EU 

If you’re a GFMD member, we’ve provided information for you about how to deal with and fill out the most common EU templates.

Foundation support and individual giving on the rise

According to the Institute for Nonprofit News’ annual report, 2020 saw an increase in foundation support and individual giving for nearly two-thirds of nonprofit news outlets, but a decrease in earned revenue for about half. Read NiemanLab's overview and analysis of the report here.

Featured funding resources

Don’t forget to check out GIJN’s resources for investigative journalism at their helpdesk, FPU’s resource centre on media viability and sustainability, and a SPLICE interview with MDIF’s Kevin Brockland on how to plan for an ask before you need it. All of these are also showcased on the fundraising resource centre’s compilation of tools and resources.

The Google News Lab is a team within the Google News Initiative whose mission is to collaborate with journalists and entrepreneurs to help build the future of media. Launched in 2015, the News Lab works with news organisations to help drive innovation, address industry challenges, and provide training and access to emerging technologies for reporting and storytelling.

Google News Initiative is centered around three primary goals:
1) elevating and strengthening quality journalism,
2) enabling new business models to support quality journalism, and
3) empowering news organisations to leverage technology for innovation in the newsrooms. 

To accomplish this, they’ve engaged with news partners to create new products, partnerships, and programs.

Through rounds of regional funding, the GNI Innovation Challenges programme empowers news innovators from around the world to demonstrate new thinking in online journalism and the development of new publishing business models. In turn, Google shares knowledge generated from the projects with the wider industry.  

You can see GFMD’s full Google News Initiative profile here. 

The European Commission has launched a call for proposals – "Media Councils in the Digital Age" – to support the activities of media self-regulation bodies and to promote the importance of journalistic standards in the modern media environment.

See details on the call for proposals here.

The European Commission helps to shape the EU's overall strategy, proposes new EU laws and policies, monitors their implementation and manages the EU budget. It also plays a significant role in supporting international development and delivering aid.

Applications to the Commission are made using prescribed templates and, for the most part, submissions can be made online. All calls for proposals and tenders are announced through the TED tendering portal or the International Partnerships (formerly EuropeAid) online platform. 

You can find the EU Commission’s profile in our MediaDev Fundraising guide. And check out the GFMD Fundraising Guide's module on Common Templates for information on how to use the EU Commission's most common template for media development funding applications.