Media Resilience Lab

Overview

Independent reporting across the Eastern Partnership region is increasingly shaped by political pressure, transnational repression, internet shutdowns, restricted access to information, and shrinking resources. The Media Resilience Lab supports journalists in exile and in-country, linking newsroom support with structured training and international cooperation to build long-term investigative capacity and stronger regional networks.

Goals

• Strengthen independent reporting under conditions of repression and limited access to information
• Build sustainable investigative capacity through skills, networks, and newsroom support
• Enable cross-border cooperation that increases impact and resilience across the region

Regions

Azerbaijan, Belarus, Russia, and other Eastern Partnership countries (EPR)

Who can participate

• Exile-based media workers
• In-country reporters and editors
• Early-career journalists from EPR seeking internships, fellowships, and structured mentorship
• Journalists from Germany seeking a journalist or a media organization from EPR for a collaborative media project

What the programme offers

We provide funding for three media organisations from the target countries working in exile, training, fellowships, internships, coordination and support to develop a collaborative investigative project

Training topics

• Storytelling- Video reporting
• Data journalism
• Fact-checking
• Security- Collaborative journalism
• Cross-border investigations

Timeline

April 2026 — First call for fellowships applications

June 2026 — Call for applications: Training Programme “Investigative Reporting”

August 2026 — Second Call for fellowships applications

September–November 2026 — Online training

January 2027 — Third Call for fellowships applications and training “Cross-Border Journalism”

June 2027 — Summer School

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