The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network is launching grants for media outlets seeking to strengthen community participation in reporting and investigate underreported issues.

Applications are open for media organisations from ten Balkan and Visegrad countries – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia – who are legally registered as legal entities on or before January 1, 2024.

Proposals that involve underrepresented communities, including women, young people, national and ethnic minorities, LGBTQ+ people and other marginalised or underreported groups are particularly encouraged.

The support includes:

  • Individual grants of up to €4,700 for stories addressing national, regional or local issues.
  • Cross-border grants of up to €9,400 for at least two media outlets working together on a topic relevant to audiences in Balkan and Visegrad countries.
  • A four-day online training programme on audience-engaged journalism and the use of the BE Engaged tool.
  • On-the-job mentoring throughout the project.
  • Access to BIRN’s BE Engaged digital tool for crowdsourcing, collecting and analysing information from communities.

For more details on the Call fo Applications and application form, register to the online information session in English, to be held on September 7, 2026, at 14:00 CET.