Democracy Commission Small Grants Program

Topic 1: Support for Independent Media Project Goal: To increase the capacity of independent bloggers and social media influencers to effectively produce content that can compete with misinformation, propaganda, and extremist content. Project Audience(s): The primary target audience for these projects should be men and women aged 15-35 living in Tajikistan, who have an interest in journalism, photography, videography, or social media, and who have time to devote to training and content creation. Project Objectives: Each project should achieve 1-3 of the following objectives: 1. Raise the quality and quantity of visual content created by amateur journalists and bloggers in order to expand their audience with attractive content; 2. Increase capacity of local journalists and bloggers through training on effective use of social media and providing small grants to those who show the most potential for long-term success; 3. Increase professionalism of social media influencers on topics of public interest and inspire them to post more on such subjects. Topic 2: Countering Violent Extremism Project Goal: To increase the amount of anti-extremist content in Tajikistan’s traditional and social media space through the recruitment of a cadre of moderate voices to produce and share such positive content during and after the project’s completion. Project Audience(s): The primary target audience for these projects should be young males living in Tajikistan and Russia, with limited education, working in manual labor or unskilled jobs, and who tend to be more conservative in their religious and social views. Project Objectives: Each project should achieve 1-4 of the following objectives: 1. Increase the number of people receiving messages of tolerance and non-violence from respected and popular figures in society through social and traditional media; 2. Increase the long-term capacity of moderate voices to continue spreading messages of tolerance and non-violence, designed to continue effectively after the project’s completion; 3. Increase the amount of visual content in the Tajiki language focused on combatting violent extremism that can be easily shared on social media platforms; 4. Increase awareness of the consequences of violent extremism through sharing real stories of victims and survivors. Topic 3: Human Rights and Democratic Inclusion Project Goal: To increase acceptance and inclusion of all members of society, in particular those from underrepresented communities, and to reduce discrimination against such groups. Project Audience(s): The primary target audience for these projects should be young men and women in living in major population centers of Tajikistan, who have a university education or are current university students, who tend to be more open-minded in their views. Project Objectives: Each project should achieve 1-2 of the following objectives: 1. Increase public awareness of the challenges faced by members of these marginalized groups; 2. Provide networks of support for individuals from these groups facing harassment, stigmatization, and violence; 3. Highlight examples of positive actions by members of these groups and their allies in society on social media and in traditional media when possible.