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Apply for Challenge grants now!
The Challenge grants are an opportunity for us to collaborate and share resources to strengthen our work on freedom of expression and religion on the internet, and counter online hate speech.
Who should apply for a Challenge grant?
Individuals who are researchers, artists, documentary filmmakers, satirists or journalists from one of the five countries covered by this project. Civil society organisations that have experience in research, capacity building, campaigning or advocacy in the areas of freedom of expression and religion from one of the five countries covered by this project.
We particularly welcome women, LGBTIQ persons and organisations, atheists, religious minorities and persons with disabilities to apply for the subgrants and collaborate.
Countries of focus
The Challenge grants are for activities carried out in the following countries of focus: Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar and Pakistan.
Grant process and selection
A total of 56 grants will be made available under the Challenge project until December 2021.
Calls for proposals will remain open throughout this period. Our grants committee, comprising APC staff and project partners, will select proposals for activities that match the objectives and priorities of each of the five complementary activity tracks.
Successful grantees will be invited to participate in the annual Challenge Camps which will bring together artists, human rights defenders, trainers, APC members and co-implementers of the project. At the Challenge Camps, grantees will have the opportunity to plan activities, network, build their capacity and strategise on campaigns for greater collaboration and impact.
Types of grants
We provide five types of grants:
Project goal and actions
The "Challenging hate narratives and violations of freedom of religion and expression online in Asia" (Challenge) project, funded by the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR), seeks to protect and promote respect for freedom of religion and expression on the internet, particularly by countering hate speech online on the basis of religion, and generating narratives and discourse that defend secular and diverse opinions touching upon religion.
The three-year project (2019-2021) will focus on five countries in South and Southeast Asia – Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar and Pakistan – characterised by the presence of majority religious communities and challenges for secularism and pluralism.
The project includes provision of grants to individuals and civil society groups to carry out research, capacity building, developing creative content, campaigns and advocacy in the countries of focus.
Learn more about the project and ongoing activities at: https://www.apc.org/en/project/challenge
If you have any questions, please write to us at: challenge@apc.org
Image by Kruttika Susurla (https://kruttika.com)
