Tag: Hub

Balkan Dispatch: Apply Now for BIRN’s Travel and Reporting Grants

BIRN’s Reporting Democracy Travel & Reporting Programme invites journalists from the Visegrad region to apply for a grant that covers professional fees and field reporting expenses. This is a unique opportunity to report from the Balkans and gain deeper insights into the region.

As part of our ongoing commitment to fostering journalistic collaboration and knowledge exchange between regions, we are pleased to launch the 2025 cycle of our Travel & Reporting Grants Programme.

This programme offers a unique chance to embark on a reporting assignment, backed by financial support, editorial guidance, and on-the-ground assistance in countries where BIRN has established offices: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and Montenegro.

We encourage journalists with a strong interest in the Balkans to apply and produce impactful stories for audiences in their home countries. Selected stories may also be featured on BIRN’s Reporting Democracy platform and in leading media outlets across the region.

We welcome pitches for a variety of journalistic formats, including analysis, investigative pieces, feature stories and interviews. Cross-border reporting, serialised stories and multimedia outputs such as video, photography, radio or podcast content are also strongly encouraged.

Who Can Apply?

We invite applications from journalists based in Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Applications are welcome from:

  • Individual journalists, whether affiliated with a newsroom or working as freelancers
  • Teams that may include reporters, editors, producers, videographers or photographers
  • Media outlets with an interest in cross-border or international reporting

A maximum of ten (10) grants will be awarded during this call.

Grant Amount

Each successful applicant will receive 2,500 euros to support the production of high-quality, original journalism.

Important Dates:

Application Deadline: July 10, 2025, by 23:59 CET

Project Completion Deadline: February 2026

Each applicant may submit only one application per grant cycle.

What Should the Application Include?

To be considered, your application should include the following:

Topic Overview: A clear description of your proposed story idea and why it is relevant.

Balkan Fieldwork Plan: An outline of your planned reporting trip(s) to one or more Balkan countries, including a rough timeline.

Publishing Strategy: A distribution plan explaining where and how you intend to publish or broadcast your story.

Eligible Costs Covered by the Grant:

  • Professional fees
  • Travel and transport expenses
  • Accommodation
  • Daily allowances during fieldwork
  • Production costs (e.g., fixers, translation, photo/video services, etc.)

How to Apply

To submit your application, please complete the online application form available at this LINK. At the start of the form, you’ll be asked to choose whether you are applying as an individual journalist/team or as a media outlet — the relevant version of the form will then open automatically based on your selection.

All applications must be submitted in English.

Please ensure that your responses are clear and thorough, as we will only follow up if essential information is missing and prevents an objective evaluation.

The deadline for applications is July 10, 2025.

If you have any questions or need assistance during the application process, feel free to contact us at [email protected]. We’re here to help.

Evaluation Process

Step 1: Technical Review

BIRN staff will conduct a technical check to confirm all required documents have been submitted correctly.

Step 2: Editorial Evaluation

An editorial board will assess applications that pass the technical review based on the story idea’s originality, feasibility, and potential impact.

Step 3: Notification of Results

All applicants will be notified of the outcome. Successful applicants will be informed by August 5, 2025.

We look forward to receiving your proposals and supporting your work in producing compelling journalism that bridges regions and tells important stories across borders.

BIRN and Goethe-Institut Join Forces to Empower Public Service Media in the Western Balkans

Public service broadcasters and media professionals from across the Western Balkan in Podgorica, Montenegro, attended a two-day training designed to strengthen audience engagement and enhance cross-border collaboration in journalism.

On June 3 and 4, the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) and Goethe-Institute.V. organised the event “Empowering Public Service Media for Greater Citizen Engagement and Cross-Border Collaboration”. The event was also hosted by RTCG, Montenegro’s public broadcaster.

This initiative brought together media professionals from public broadcasters in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia, providing practical tools and strategies to foster stronger connections with audiences and to collaborate across borders on shared issues.

“Audience engagement is a concept we at BIRN have been implementing over the past three years. We developed a digital tool that is now successfully used by more than 50 media outlets across the Western Balkans and Visegrad countries – a tool through which award-winning stories have been produced,” Vuk Maras, BIRN Montenegro’s Director, said.

Gentiana Murati, BIRN’s Deputy Director, presented the scheme for the content production grants, which are available for public broadcasters.

The training aimed to address pressing challenges, such as declining viewership and rising mistrust, and harness new opportunities for meaningful public engagement.

“At RTCG, we believe in innovation that serves the public good, and we are proud to host initiatives like this that bring together regional partners to learn from each other and work towards stronger, more trusted journalism across the Western Balkans,” Boris Raonic, RTCG’s Director General, said.

During the training, participants explored participatory journalism methods, innovative audience formats, and successful case studies from the region and beyond.

Boris Raonic and Georgia Trismpioti

“At a time when public trust and audience engagement are more important than ever, public service media must evolve – not just to inform, but to listen, include, and co-create with their communities,” said Georgia Trismpioti, Regional Team Leader for the “Innovation. Media. Minds” Programme.

“We know the challenges – shrinking audiences, rising mistrust – but we also know that innovation and collaboration can open new doors. This training is a chance to explore tools, share experiences, and develop ideas that can travel across borders,” she added.

This event is part of the “Innovation. Media. Minds Programme: Support to Public Service Journalism in the Western Balkans”, funded by the European Union and managed by the Goethe-Institut on behalf of the European Commission and in collaboration with its implementing partner, DW Akademie.

It is also part of the EU-funded project “Strengthening Quality News and Independent Journalism in the Western Balkans and Türkiye II”, which BIRN and seven other partners implement. It aims to provide systemic support to improve quality and professionalism in journalism in the Western Balkans and Türkiye.

Meet the People Behind BIRN: Perparim Isufi

Perparim Isufi is Balkan Insight’s editor and Kosovo correspondent. He joined BIRN Kosovo in 2014, as an editor of KALLXO.com.

Before Perparim started to work as a journalist at several media outlets in Kosovo, he studied political science at the University of Prishtina. Explaining how he imagined his career when he studied, he says:

“They are not far away from each other. Studies have been done on the juncture and disjuncture between political sciences and journalism, and when I look at them, I see that both sides have their points. However, I kept my determination to stick to my passion with journalism, despite sporadic attractions elsewhere.”

Speaking of that, he worked as a Press Assistant at the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, maintaining contacts with the Kosovo media, but it was difficult for him to adjust to working with the press from that perspective.

“But it served as a good lesson for me. Before my experience with the OSCE, I often became upset with the press offices of different organisations, when my questions were not addressed properly or were ignored. I found a different reality, a complex machine, which means press officers often are unjustly criticized by journalists,” he says.

“Switching to the other side came as work for journalists started to become more and more difficult and unaffordable. I started with the OSCE exactly on the day when I turned 10 years in journalism,” he says.

And then, life had some other surprises for Perparim; he started working with BIRN.

“I knew it would be a challenge, and I was right. I came to BIRN in May 2014, and in the first six years worked as editor with BIRN Kosovo’s flagship news site Kallxo.com. Over the years, I used to contribute to Balkan Insight, so when the opportunity came to fully switch to Balkan Insight, I grabbed it with both hands. It came very naturally. I am under the same roof, I just changed the room,” he says.

In his own words, he would lie if he said his expectations had been to stay in BIRN for such a long time.

“Eleven years and counting! Since day one, working with BIRN has always been intriguing to me. Different countries, cultures, and even time zones. A different approach to the job compared to local newsrooms in our geographical area is something I would have missed if I had not experienced it in my career,” he says.

Every journalist has their favourite and least favourite topics. Living and reporting from a country with an enduring political and security crisis, Perparim’s career has been dominated by current affairs stories, be they news, analysis, features, or interviews.

“When I need a fresh restart, I happily switch to culture stories. They are refreshing to me and offer me the chance to be more creative. Yes, it is the light stories I would want to re-read, when I am no longer in this job,” he says.

As in any other profession, journalism has its ups and downs. In Perparim’s view, they are intertwined.

“Your day starts from scratch. No matter how well you did the day before, today you have a new day ahead, which demands your full availability. And as the day goes by, you feel the best part of the job is when you switch off, with concrete results from your work – until the next morning.”

Perparim also mentors young journalists on the Media Innovation Europe project that BIRN implements.

“I have a feeling that both I as mentor and the journalists I mentor cherish it. It is always exciting to get the perspective of a young journalist. It takes me back to my old self, when I was in need of a more experienced journalist, an editor, to guide me throughout the work.”

Working with different editors in the past helped him shape himself as a person, a journalist, and now as an editor. He understands well what young journalists find hard in their profession nowadays.

“So many things have changed. In our region, young local journalists face more difficulties than before because the market is no longer the same. But when I work with them, I see their eagerness to prove themselves outside their usual boundaries,” he says.

And for any young person striving to become a journalist in the region, he has a clear message.

“Be resilient! It is common in our region to feel neglected, but just try to see who wants to make you feel that way. There will always be a powerful person or government who will try to threaten or even tempt you, just to prevent you from doing the job properly. There will always be someone who does not want your article to get across. Remember that many before us had it far more difficult, and succeeded through their resilience.”

Speaking of finishing his professional career, he explains: “Did the time come to think about it? I don’t see it coming in the future, but when the day comes, I will have many things to reflect upon. As the saying goes, once a journalist, always a journalist.”

One passion will occupy his attention and time – reading.

“When that day comes, besides my family duties, I am already planning the reading list. I recently came across an expression: Tsundoku. It is about a person who buys books but piles them up and waits for another time to read them. My pile of books of all sorts is already waiting on the shelves.”

BIRN at POINT 13 Conference: Digital Security for Activists, Media, and CSOs in Western Balkans

Sarajevo conference puts focus on increasing challenges in protecting freedom of speech, privacy and security in the digital environment.

BIRN participated in the POINT 13 conference held on May 29-30, 2025, in Sarajevo, which brought together key participants from civil society, journalism, technology and activism, focusing on digital security and infrastructure for journalists, activists and civil society organisations in the Western Balkans.

On the first day, Azra Milić, Digital Rights Programme Coordinator at BIRN Hub, moderated the panel session “Digital Security and Infrastructure for Activists, Media and CSOs in the Western Balkans”. The discussion focused on the increasing challenges in protecting freedom of speech, privacy and security in the digital environment. The panelists were Nikola Ristić, activist and co-founder of OG Sviće, Andrijana Ristić, a researcher from the Share Foundation, and Michael J Oghia from the Journalism Cloud Alliance. Two of the speakers were directly targeted in smear campaigns by the Serbian tabloid Informer due to their participation in the conference.

Nikola Ristić, in addition to being targeted because of his participation at the conference, had previously been a victim of digital surveillance, including the hacking of his phone by the Serbian Intelligence Agency (BIA) and the release of footage from security cameras at Belgrade airport to the tabloids. He noted the importance of protecting privacy and data, highlighting basic measures like strong passwords and selecting the right devices.

“You need to understand the infrastructure you use. For instance, those little keys you get at POINT Conferences to secure your data and passwords – they’re simple, but important. And yes, it matters who manufactures your phone,” he said.

In the discussion about the challenges faced by civil society organisations, it was pointed out that attacks on individuals often lead to broader attacks on the organisations themselves. Andrijana Ristić, who was also target of smear campaign last week, noted that while there is a growing focus on digital security, more attention needs to be paid to data privacy, which is often overlooked.

“Right now, it feels like the focus is overwhelmingly on security — but we need to think more about protecting our privacy too,” she warned.

Another key issue raised was the importance of secure cloud services for journalists, especially those working on investigative reporting and data analysis. Michael J Oghia stressed the significance of these tools, speaking about a project launched last year at the International Journalism Conference in Perugia. The project aims to bring together members and partners from various sectors with the goal of making cloud services more secure, accessible, and sustainable, which would help reduce costs.

The POINT 13 conference served as an important platform for exchanging experiences and solutions. Speakers agreed that progress in digital security and privacy protection is essential, as well as building the infrastructure that enables secure work in the digital environment, free from the fear of attacks, censorship, or violence.

BIRN Launches Call for ‘Paper Trail for Better Governance IV’ Project Evaluation

This evaluation is commissioned as part of Austrian Development Agency (ADA) with funds of the Austrian Development Cooperation commitment to strategic learning, accountability, and the promotion of good governance in the Western Balkans.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) is the leading independent non-governmental organisation in the Western Balkans, specialising in media development, investigative journalism, and public sector oversight. Established in 2004, BIRN operates as a network of NGOs dedicated to promoting freedom of expression, human rights, and democratic values across South-Eastern and Central Europe.

BIRN is active in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Romania, and Serbia, and maintains an editorial presence in Greece, Bulgaria, Croatia, Moldova, Montenegro, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Slovenia.

BIRN Kosovo is the network’s largest member, with 47 staff members. Founded in 2005, its core mission is to inform citizens and support Kosovo’s democratic transition by promoting accountability, the rule of law, and policy reform through professional investigative journalism. In October 2013, BIRN Kosovo and BIRN HUB partnered in what became the first phase of the Paper Trail to Better Governance which is currently in the fourth phase of implementation supported by Austrian Development Agency (ADA) since its initial phase in 2012.

The primary objective of the project throughout all phases of implementation is to advance good governance, transparency, accountability, and the responsiveness of public institutions to freedom of information in the Western Balkans. In 2023 BIRN Kosovo, in partnership with BIRN HUB, secured EUR 1,007,000 in funding from the ADA for a three-year project (Phase IV implementing period September 2023-August 2026) aimed at building on the impact, achievements, and lessons learned from the three phases of BIRN’s “A Paper Trail to Better Governance” initiative. The Paper Trail to Better Governance IV project is a cross-regional initiative that supports the European Commission’s membership requirements by promoting the rule of law, accountable governance, and an independent judiciary in the Western Balkans.

Purpose and objectives of the mid-term evaluation

BIRN is commissioning an external midterm evaluation of its Action. Conducted for both BIRN and the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), this evaluation aims to assess progress to date and guide the continued implementation of the Action. It will offer an independent analysis of current achievements, ongoing challenges, and lessons learned so far.

The evaluation’s primary purpose is learning and as such to deliver evidence-based findings, conclusions and recommendations to help refine BIRN’s programs, strategies, and activities during the remainder of the implementation period. Additionally, the evaluation will provide evidence to inform decisions on the potential future continuation and/or scaling up of the initiative.

The evaluation will focus on following primary objectives:

  • To assess the project’s relevance, effectiveness, impact and prospects for sustainability
  • To provide practical, evidence-based recommendations that will help enhance ongoing and future implementation and decision making at strategic and operational level.

The main user of the evaluation results will be BIRN. The insights generated are expected to strengthen BIRN’s impact, improve its operations, and inform its strategic direction beyond the current project. They are expected to be also relevant for other civil society organizations, donors, and development partners pursuing similar objectives in transparency, accountability, and good governance.

Scope of the evaluation

This external evaluation shall be carried in accordance with the ADA Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations. It is conducted during the second year of the three-year project and will generally cover the time period from September 2023, the start of phase IV of the project to the end of the data collection for this evaluation. For the assessment of impact, the evaluation will, however, also rely on evidence generated during previous phases of implementation.

In terms of geographic scope, it will encompass implementation in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as all the Western Balkan countries (Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia). While data collection in the field will be conducted primarily in Pristina, Kosovo and Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the engagement with stakeholders across the broader Western Balkan region will be conducted remotely.

The evaluation will cover all components of the project. It will assess the types of support, approaches and strategies applied and their role in results’ achievement and identify related lessons learned. The evaluation team is expected to review the project’s intervention logic and if needed suggest improvements.

Given that ADA has supported BIRN through several interconnected projects aimed at achieving long-term goals, this evaluation presents a unique opportunity to partially assess the broader impact of that support, beyond the results of individual project phases.

Evaluation Questions

Relevance

  1. To what extent has the project’s relevance changed over the implementation period, in particular with a view to changes in the context (including, but not limited to recent US funding cuts)?;
  2. How has the project adapted its approach or priorities in response to the changing context?

Effectiveness

  1. How has the project contributed to training and empowering its target groups, particularly journalists and to what extent have the trained journaliss
  2. applied their acquired skills within their workplaces?
  3. How have other media outlets in the region engaged with BIRN’s capacity building efforts and with what results?
  4. What were the key factors — both positive and negative — that influenced the achievement or non-achievement of the project’s objectives?

Impact

  1. To what extent has the project contributed to reducing corruption and increasing transparency in the Western Balkans?
  2. What have been hindering and facilitating factors for impact?

9. Sustainability

What is the likelihood that results generated by the project will continue after its completion and what have been hindering and facilitating factors for sustainability (internal and external)?

Design and Approach

The evaluation shall apply a mixed-methods approach, combining:

  • Document review
  • Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions (in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina in-person; online with representatives based in other countries.

Data collection, analysis and reporting must Gender-sensitive and inclusive data disaggregation.

The evaluation will proceed in several phases, aimed at collecting data and answering the evaluation questions outlined in Chapter 4:

  • Contracting and Kick-off Meeting: The kick-off meeting will take place only after the contract between BIRN and the selected bidder has been signed. Prior to the meeting, project documentation, annexes, and reports submitted to ADA will be shared with the evaluation team to allow for an initial review. The meeting will then serve to clarify any outstanding issues and finalize roles as needed.
  • Desk Research and Documentation Analysis: The Evaluation Team will review all relevant existing data, including but not limited to project documentation
  • Preliminary interviews: preliminary interviews can be held with n introductory (hybrid) meeting with the project and editorial teams will focus on project management, coordination, and available resources.
  • Inception Report: The Evaluation Team will prepare an Inception Report outlining the detailed evaluation design, methods, tools, work plan, deliverables, timelines, and mitigation strategies, following the structure in Annex 5 (“Quality Checklist for Inception Reports”). As part of the Inception Report, the Evaluation Team will draft an Evaluation Matrix, aligned with Annex 7 of the ADA PP Evaluation Guidelines, see ibid, p. 51).
  • Field Visits and Hybrid Meetings: In-person interviews and focus groups will be conducted in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, with online consultations for stakeholders based in the wider region and beyond.
  • Debriefing and Presentation of preliminary findings: After the end of the data collection, the evaluation team will provide an overview of the data collection and stakeholder inclusion and present the preliminary findings conclusions as well as preliminary recommendations to BIRN and ADA (online/hybrid meeting).
  • Evaluation report (draft and final): The draft evaluation report will be submitted to BIRN for formal written feedback (BIRN, ADA), finalized by the evaluation team after consideration of the feedback and approved by BIRN.
  • Presentation of the Final Evaluation Report: The final evaluation report will be presented to an audience selected by BIRN and ADA, in a hybrid format.

Proposed methods:

For the different phases of the evaluation, the Evaluation Team will collect data and information using a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, including:

  • Desk research and document analysis of key project materials, reports, and annexes previously submitted to ADA and BIRN;
  • Structured and semi-structured interviews conducted through face-to-face or online meetings with approximately 10 stakeholders, including project staff, implementing partners, and institutional stakeholders. These interviews will take place across three primary locations: Prishtina, Sarajevo, Tirana. [Location A], [Location B], and [Location C];
  • At least one focus group discussion (FGD) with 8 youth participants who completed the internship programme, ideally conducted in-person in Prishtina, Kosovo or online if

This approach will inform the estimation of working days required for primary data collection in the workplan.

All data collected needs to be disaggregated by sex, ethnicity and where feasible also in terms of disability. It is expected that the Evaluation Team will present concrete recommendations which are addressed to the specific stakeholders. In addition, all research questions should be addressed paying attention to gender, social and environmental issues.

The Evaluation Team needs to base its work and methods in line with the Guidelines for Project and Programme Evaluations  developed by the Austrian Development Agency and OECD DAC norms need to be considered throughout the entire evaluation process (found at: https://www.entwicklung.at/fileadmin/user_upload/Dokumente/Evaluierung/Evaluierungs_Leitfaeden/Guidelines_for_Programme_and_Project_Evaluations_ADA_2020.pdf).

Expected outputs and deliverables/Report(s)

 Inception Report

  • Inception report (approx. 10-15 pages) containing appropriate methodology to be applied during the mid-term evaluation, as well as the work plan to be used during the course of the assignment is drafted, submitted, and approved by BIRN. Report must be in line with the Annex 5: Quality Checklist for Inception Report (IR), 46 and 47;

Evaluation Report

All reports need to be written in English.

Workplan

The assignment is estimated to require 79 working days. The midterm evaluation is expected to begin in June and be completed by the end of August 2025. The first draft report must be submitted by September 15, 2025, with the final report due by September 30, 2025.

Activity Expert 1 / Team Leader Expert 2 / Team member Total days per activity
Desk research 6 4 10
Draft and finalize inception report 7 3 10
Field visit (BiH and Kosovo) 12 12 24
Virtual data collection 5 3 8
Data analysis 4 3 7
Draft and finalize evaluation report 10 4 14
Debriefing / Presentation 3 3 6
Total 47 32 79

The written feedback from BIRN Kosovo, partners and the donors is planned to be given within a maximum of two weeks after submission of the reports.

Evaluation Management Arrangements

The BIRN Project Manager will serve as the main point of contact for the Evaluation Team, facilitating communication, providing project documents, and assisting with stakeholder engagement and logistical arrangements.

The Evaluation Team will operate independently from the project and organizational management structures of BIRN Kosovo and BIRN HUB.

BIRN’s management will fully respect and uphold the Evaluation Team’s independence, impartiality, and ethical standards, in accordance with established evaluation principles and the BIRN Code of Ethics.

Requirements for the Company/Team of Evaluators

BIRN is seeking a team of two evaluators or a company proposing at least two experts — a Team Leader and a Team Member — with at least one team member being a woman.

Candidates who were involved in any stage of the project’s design or implementation will not be considered.

Required Experience and Qualifications for companies and/or individuals within a company or Evaluation Team:
  • Proven experience in conducting and leading evaluations, preferably in the fields of good governance, rule of law, or media sector;
  • Experience in evaluating regional projects is an asset;
  • Excellent communication skills in English; proficiency in Albanian or Serbo-Croatian is mandatory for at least one team member;
  • Strong communication, analysis, and presentation skills;
  • Submission of a professional profile for the evaluation team/company (including CVs of all team members);
  • At least one team member must have experience in projects involving gender mainstreaming and/or environmental protection;
  • Submission of at least two samples of previous evaluations conducted by the company or members of the proposed Evaluation Team.
Specific Requirements for the Team Leader/Senior Expert:
  • At least 7 years of overall professional experience with a Master’s degree in a relevant field;
  • Minimum of 5 years’ experience working with regional or international development projects and conducting evaluations using OECD/DAC criteria;
  • Lead role in at least three evaluations, preferably with experience in the Western Balkans;
  • Experience in program formulation, monitoring and evaluation, and qualitative data collection and analysis;
  • Proven ability to produce professional, concise, and reader-friendly evaluation reports;
  • Fluency in English (written and spoken) and good knowledge of Serbo-Croatian or Albanian.
Specific Requirements for the Team Member:
  • At least 7 years of professional experience and studies in Law, Political Science, International Development, or the Media sector;
  • Previous experience working on rule of law or media-related projects;
  • Experience in qualitative data collection, analysis, and interpretation;
  • Solid understanding of results-based and impact evaluations;
  • Fluency in English (written and spoken) and good knowledge of Serbo-Croatian or Albanian.
Specifications for the Submission of Offers Application process

Qualified and interested candidates are asked to submit an electronic copy of their expression of interest/proposal by June 2 2025 at 23:59pm, with the subject REF: “Paper Trail for Better Governance IV – Evaluation” to [email protected] and [email protected]

Applicants must submit the following:

Technical Proposal:

  • Suitability Proof/Document:
    • For companies: A profile demonstrating suitability for the assignment based on previous work experience and qualifications, including short biographies of experts and attached CVs (maximum 5 pages).
    • For individuals: A team profile outlining relevant previous experience aligned with this ToR and detailed CVs for all members.

●  Team Composition:

  • Clear assignment of roles between the Team Leader and Team Member, ensuring that at least one member is a woman.

●  Methodology:

  • A proposed approach for carrying out the evaluation, including data collection and analysis methods, sampling strategies, triangulation, risks and mitigation

●  Draft Work and Timetable:

  • A suggested work plan and timeline, fitting within the number of working days proposed in this ToR.

Financial Offer:

  • A detailed financial proposal, broken down by deliverables and individual daily
  • The budget must be all-inclusive, covering accommodation, transportation, and any other related expenses, if applicable.
Evaluation of Offers:

The Technical Proposal will be evaluated with 70% whereas the financial one will be evaluated at 30%. The financial offer will be evaluated by using the best value for money approach (combined scoring method).

When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the company or Evaluation Team, whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

  • Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
  • Having received the highest score out of a predetermined set of weighted technical and financial criteria as explained below:
    • Technical Criteria weight; [70 points]
    • Financial Criteria weight; [30 points]
Criteria Weight Max. Point
Technical evaluation: 70% 70
●       Relevant professional experience in line with Evaluation Requirements; 25% 25
●       Quality of prepared Methodology and methods to be used in line with the Evaluation Requirements 35% 35
●       Team Composition, gender and previous experience in thematic and geographical areas as required in the ToR 10% 10
Financial offer: 30% 30

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

BIRN has a maximum budget of EUR 30,000 for carrying out the required Mid-Term Evaluation.

ANNEXES

The Evaluation Team should take note of the following documents, comprising annexes to this ToR:

Annex 1 – Short Project Summary

Annex 2 – Paper Trail Investigations – Focus Page with investigations produced by the project

Annex 3 – BIRD Source Database

Annex 4 – ADA Guidelines for programme and project evaluations

Annex 5 –  ADA Results Assessment Form (RAF)

Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence Winners Announced at Ceremony in Vienna

The winners of the Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence were announced at a ceremony in Vienna on 16 May, honouring three powerful stories that reveal pressing environmental, political, and social challenges across Europe.

First prize of €3,000 was awarded to Zuza Nazaruk, a journalist from Poland currently based in the Netherlands, for her compelling story on the escalating crisis in the Białowieża Forest. The story examines how this UNESCO World Heritage site is being transformed into a militarised zone, where environmental degradation, heightened military presence, and migration converge. Through vivid reporting, Nazaruk reveals how thousands of migrants and soldiers are clashing in a forest once celebrated for its rich biodiversity, now caught in the crossfire of geopolitical tensions.

Jury member, and a correspondent for the Austrian daily, Der Standard, Adelheid Wölfl said: “Zuza Nazaruk shows the impact of geopolitical battles on the vulnerable and abused. She sheds light on those invisible in the thicket and portrays colourfully parts of our nature: plants, animals, and humans. She not only shows how much money and effort is spent in today’s Europe on preventing migration, but also the impact this has on our ecosystem. Zuza Nazaruk proves that we need journalism that gives a voice to those we cannot hear, and simultaneously safeguards something we all need: dignity.”

The second award of €2,000 went to Greek journalists Ioanna Louloudi and Paschalina Kapetaniou for their investigation into the Greek state’s repeated failure to accept responsibility and deliver justice to victims of police brutality, accidents, and disasters. Despite existing laws that mandate state compensation, the authorities frequently appeal rulings and prolong legal proceedings, forcing citizens into years-long battles for recognition and redress. Their story highlights the frustration and mistrust that this persistent denial of accountability fosters among the public.

“It is a Kafkaesque story, which happens now, in a democracy, where paradoxically the state fights against its citizens. It is a story about a human battle for dignity and civil rights,” said the jury member and Director of the Albanian Media Institute, Remzi Lani.

The third award of €1,000 went to Zuzana Vlasata from the Czech Republic for her story about a toxic leak on a Czech river. Her report shows how a factory linked to former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš should have been a prime suspect over the incident, but evaded official scrutiny. Jury member and editor at Bellingcat, Gyula Csák, said: “Zuzana Vlasata’s powerful and engaging investigative piece demonstrates state capture and systemic failure through the story of a factory accident in the Czech Republic.”

The ceremony marked the conclusion of the 2023 edition of the Fellowship.

In addition to jury members Adelheid Wölfl, Remzi Lani and Gyula Csák, this year’s panel included Milorad Ivanović, representing the FJE alumni network; Florian Hassel, Central and Eastern Europe correspondent for the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung; Elena Panagiotidis, editor at the Swiss daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung; and Kristof Bender, deputy chairman of the European Stability Initiative.

With the end of this year’s programme, seven fellows join the FJE alumni network – consisting of more than 150 journalists from 14 Central and Eastern European countries who promote the highest standards of professional journalism.

Launched in 2007, the Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence is now in its eighteenth year. The programme fosters professional growth, cross-border cooperation, and in-depth reporting on key issues across central, eastern and south-eastern Europe. Each year, ten fellows receive financial and editorial support to develop long-form stories on complex regional and European topics.

The Fellowship is implemented by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network and supported by ERSTE Foundation.

Strengthening the Role and Capacities of Investigative Journalism in Kosovo

BIRN Kosovo

The project aims to strengthen independent media and civil society in Kosovo by enhancing their capacity for professional, fact-checked investigative reporting on democracy, human rights and European integration. It supports freedom of expression, media literacy and digital rights through training, legal support and targeted sub-grants and fellowships.

Summary:

Kosovo’s legal framework guarantees and protects freedom of expression, freedom and pluralism of media and access to public information. However, in practice, Kosovo and its media sector still face numerous systemic, economic and social constraints, creating obstacles to the dissemination of objective, professional and fact-checked information to the public. 

Kosovo’s media sector is in a difficult economic situation. It depends on political power and business groups and is also criticised by international organisations for lack of professionalism. According to Reporters Without Borders, media in Kosovo are financially fragile and therefore vulnerable to political influence. The Media Ownership Monitor found that “the market, through relatively small, is crowded, intensifying competition for limited advertising revenue and rendering media outlets vulnerable to external influences, including political and business interests”.

In recent years, Kosovo’s media landscape has seen a profound transformation as a result of the digital age. Information sharing has changed dramatically as a result of the internet and social networking sites like Facebook and Instagram, especially for young people. While TV is still the major source of information, with a long story in Kosovo’s media landscape, some radio stations now transmit their material online, so radio has, in some ways, also embraced the digitalization of media. On the other hand, online journalism is rapidly evolving as technology and internet use increases. However, journalists often report harassment and intimidation, especially on social media. To address the issues stated above, BIRN Kosovo in partnership with the Press Council of Kosovo (PCK) and TV Mreza, a network of local Serbian-language TV and online media in Kosovo, aim to strengthen the role and capacities of investigative journalism in Kosovo by bringing local, regional and international experience to investigative journalism, media development, fact-checking, capacity building and professional experience within the proposed action.

Donor:

European Union

Main Objective:

To strengthen the capacities of the media and NGOs on quality, professional, investigative and fact-checked reporting on democracy, good governance, human rights and European integration topics, and expose disinformation and biased reporting.

Specific Objectives:

– Strengthening freedom of expression and the capacities of independent media to produce qualitative investigative journalism and qualitative programmes; 

– Raising awareness in the media on the implementation of media laws related to Freedom of Information, defamation, whistleblowing, cyber-security, crises/hostile environment reporting, copyright and others;

– Assisting capacity building and qualitative and impartial investigative journalism of the media in Kosovo through workshops, trainings, sub-granting and fellowship programmes; 

– Promoting media literacy, fundamental human rights and European integration through capacity building and investigative reporting.

Main activities:

Activity 1: Produce and broadcast 30 in-depth investigative reports, 4 TV debates, 40 articles, 10 solutions journalism stories, and 2 documentaries that will tackle a wide range of public interest issues such as rule of law, the justice sector, mismanagement of public funds, local governance, labour law enforcement, organised crime, migration, trafficking, education, health, women and minority rights, disability and the European agenda, etc.

Activity 2: Organise 9 workshops, 3 training sessions and a 5-day camp for at least 200 journalists and students of journalism to equip them with professional journalism tools and knowledge and share experiences on important current topics such as media ownership, media financing, women’s presence in the media, media regulations, ethics, gender-sensitive reporting, disability and LGBTQI+ issues, and legally safe and crisis/hostile environment reporting.

Activity 3: Organise the “Kosovo Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence” by awarding EUR 2,000.00 each to 20 investigative journalists to write in-depth investigative stories related to important topics.

Activity 4: Sub-granting programme for national and local media in Kosovo to provide financial support for about 10 media organisations and outlets chosen through an open call for proposals, with a comprehensive range of topics, including those prioritised in the European Reform Agenda (ERA) Strategy.

Target groups:

  • Media organisations
  • Outlets and journalists working in Albanian, Serbian, Roma, Ashkali, Egyptian or any other minority language, both in public and private media organisations
  • Students in the final year at public or private universities in Kosovo from the media, journalism, and/or production departments and young journalists working in media organisations and/or outlets; 
  • Media regulatory bodies – IMC, PCK and AJK.

Main implementor:

BIRN Kosovo

Partners:

TV Mreža, Press Council of Kosovo

Meet the People Behind BIRN: Aida Tinjak

Aida Tinjak is the Grants and Project Coordinator at the BIRN Hub.

Her professional path has taken her from art history and pedagogy through working with several non-governmental organisations, cultural and creative industries projects, and strengthening local self-government to her current position in the BIRN Hub. So, how did she manage all these positions?

Let’s meet her!

Aida’s academic background in Art History and Pedagogy from the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Sarajevo, shaped the foundation of her interest in how culture, memory, and narrative intertwine. She worked as a curator at Gallery 11/07/95, a memorial gallery dedicated to the memory of the Srebrenica genocide.

“It was there that I encountered the power of war photography through permanent and temporary exhibitions by renowned photojournalists such as Ron Haviv, Narciso Contreras, and Paul Lowe, whose work has shaped how the world sees and remembers the war. These exhibitions were not merely artistic displays—they were testimonies. They revealed to me how photojournalism, particularly war photography, operates at the intersection of art, truth, and justice. On one hand, such images preserve historical facts; on the other, they restore voice and presence to those who were silenced”, Aida explains.

This experience profoundly influenced her understanding of journalism as an active force in memory-making and truth-telling. After her time at the gallery, she worked with several non-governmental organisations on projects related to cultural and creative industries and the empowerment of local communities.

“At the same time, I tried my hand at journalism, exploring one of its many forms. However, I soon (and perhaps just in time) discovered that what resonates more deeply with me is supporting and empowering journalists—those who seek to deepen their knowledge, expand their skills, and explore new tools. I began writing articles focused on practical techniques and digital tools that journalists can use in their everyday work. The aim was not only to share useful resources, but to contribute, however modestly, to raising the overall quality of media content and building the competencies that a resilient, responsible journalism requires”, says Tinjak.

Joining BIRN felt like a natural progression for her. It allowed Aida to continue engaging with narratives that matter, with investigative journalism’s added urgency and responsibility:

“I believe that journalism and art are united by a shared impulse—to communicate, to preserve memory, and to question the world around us. Both serve as powerful tools for challenging oppressive systems and amplifying silenced voices, pushing boundaries and standing as unwavering beacons of truth in a world that often seeks to suppress them.” 

When she joined BIRN Hub as a Project/Programme Assistant in 2021, she expected hard work, persistence, and the need to grow into the responsibilities ahead.

”And that’s exactly what awaited me. The road wasn’t without its challenges, but each experience has left valuable lessons that have shaped my professional path. What I hadn’t dared to expect was the depth of connection within the team. It’s the people who make me proud to be part of BIRN—their trust, support, and understanding make every challenge easier and every success more meaningful”, explains Aida.

Now, as a Grants and Project Coordinator at BIRN Hub, her work revolves around coordinating and implementing project activities, and overseeing and managing the grant-making process. In practice, that means a great deal of communication, mostly with journalists who are grant recipients, and quite a bit of administration.

“What makes the role truly rewarding is the opportunity to connect and collaborate with journalists from different countries (even if mostly online), to read their story proposals, and to hear fresh, often powerful ideas. It makes me happy to be, even in a small way, part of the journey that leads to the production of those stories. The job requires solid organisational skills, which I’ve come to value more and more over time. I believe that when things are well structured from the start, it’s easier to navigate the unexpected. While plans sometimes shift and circumstances change, having a reliable structure in place helps me adapt and keep things moving”, says Aida.

One of the BIRN programmes Aida works on is the Fellowship of Journalistic Excellence, which covers a region spanning 14 countries, from Poland and the Czech Republic to Greece and Romania. It has been running since 2007, and more than 150 leading regional journalists have participated. The ERSTE Foundation co-funded it.

“The programme begins with a kick-off seminar in Vienna, where selected fellows from across the region meet, exchange ideas, and begin shaping their stories under the guidance of an editor. This is followed by a months-long process of research, reporting, writing, and revising, resulting in some truly exceptional stories. Many of these stories have been recognised with prestigious awards, which serve as a testament to the programme’s ability to nurture high-quality journalism in the region.

What truly stands out is that the programme doesn’t end once the story is published. Fellows who complete the programme join an expanding alumni network that offers a wealth of opportunities for collaboration, networking, and knowledge-sharing. This network plays a key role in enhancing professional growth and strengthening cross-border journalistic ties”, explains Tinjak.

BIRN is currently working on enhancing the programme’s website, which will feature some new additions, such as an alumni directory—a dynamic database where fellows can connect and showcase their professional biographies. In addition, BIRN will launch a Fellowship podcast series, designed to promote the programme’s brand and delve into the significance of long-form journalism.

Reporting Democracy is another BIRN project Aida works on, and is also supported by the ERSTE Foundation. It is focused on leveraging independent journalism to critically examine the issues shaping the future of democracy in Central, Eastern, and Southeast Europe. It has a network of regional correspondents and publishes a bi-weekly review of key democratic developments — the Twice podcast (Two Weeks in Central Europe).

“Reporting Democracy supports journalists in a variety of ways, including accepting pitches on a rolling basis, commissioning stories, and offering grants. These grants include those provided through the Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence, as well as the Travel and Reporting Programme, which funds journalists from the Visegrad region (Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia) to carry out field research and report on Balkan-related stories. In addition, we periodically offer grants for journalists from Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe, along with Fellowship Alumni grants available to members of the Fellowship alumni network”, said Tinjak.

In the end, we’re returning to the beginning of our story. Art history and museums’ educational functions remain Aida’s passions, but have evolved over time, although their essence remains unchanged:

“I see it as a continuous thread—quietly reminding me that there is always more to explore and uncover, and that growth often lies just beyond the familiar boundaries. I believe that a diversity of experiences and knowledge is what shapes and strengthens us, preparing us for whatever lies ahead.”

She also continued with her education, becoming a Certified New Media Designer a few years ago. Recently, she’s been revisiting that field, refreshing what she’s learned. After the work is done, Aida has her favourite activities during her spare time:

“I enjoy spending my free time with family and friends—whether that means hiking, catching a live gig, seeing a play, taking a shot at a pub quiz (with more enthusiasm than correct answers ☺ ), or simply going for a walk (and pretending it counts as exercise ☺ ). At other times, it’s about embracing stillness—giving myself and my thoughts the space to pause, regroup, and recharge for whatever comes next.”

Request for Quotes for Digital Rights Policy Papers Development

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN) is seeking highly skilled experts to contribute to the Reporting Digital Rights and Freedoms project and to develop Policy Papers that will outline regulatory and policy paths to prevent digital rights violations, focusing on countries from the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia) and Turkey.

We specifically welcome applications from Turkey to explore the particular dynamic and evolving context in terms of digital rights and freedoms. Current policy and legislative framework in this field in the region is underdeveloped and/or obsolete. It fails to address existing challenges, let alone anticipate changes driven by the fast-changing world of technology. The aim is to identify existing regional policies that do not meet international standards and require significant changes, as well as highlight missing policies that need to be developed. These papers should offer structured, multi-sectoral approaches to identifying needs and opportunities for policy change and propose recommendations to prevent violations of digital rights.

Role Overview

BIRN is seeking proposals from qualified individuals or groups of individuals to develop a comprehensive policy paper on digital rights. The selected experts will be responsible for proposing relevant topics for the paper, conducting thorough analyses, engaging with stakeholders, and developing the policy paper. Their work will focus on providing recommendations to enhance digital rights governance, address policy gaps, and align policies with international standards.

This role requires a multi-sectoral approach, which will contribute to a deeper understanding of the needs of all stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, including journalists, researchers, activists, academics, industry players, vulnerable groups as well as decision makers. Furthermore, the selected experts will work closely with the BIRN team to incorporate insights from previous findings and monitoring cases into their work.

Main Tasks and Responsibilities

  • Conduct Desk Research: The expert will conduct desk research on digital rights issues, regional policies and the legislative framework relevant to the proposed theme. This includes reviews of existing regional and international frameworks related to digital rights and analysis of different regional case studies. The expert will analyse gaps, identify weaknesses and challenges within the current landscape, offering in-depth analysis to support further advancements in this field.
  • Conduct Interviews with Relevant Stakeholders: The expert will engage with all relevant stakeholders to gather necessary insights, which will serve to address the identified needs based on the feedback received and to incorporate them into the paper.
  • Develop the Policy Paper: The expert will develop the policy paper, ensuring it is structured, evidence-based and clearly understandable for all stakeholders. It is essential that the policy paper includes realistic and feasible recommendations, such as proposing specific amendments, new policies or legislative frameworks that can enhance digital rights protections to prevent digital rights violations in the region. Additionally, the policy paper must be grounded in international human rights standards, while being tailored to the specific context of the region.

Timeline

Work on this assignment shall start in June 2025.

Remuneration

The compensation for each Policy Paper may reach a maximum of 1,000 EUR.

Eligibility Criteria and Offer Evaluations

Applicants should have a proven experience in digital rights research, policy analysis, as well as strong understanding of digital rights. Also, applicants should demonstrate ability to produce high-quality policy papers or similar reports.

Selection Criteria:

Selection Criteria Points
Work Experience: proven experience in digital rights research and/or policy research with strong understanding of digital rights concepts 40 points
Proposed topic: relevance, clarity and feasibility of the proposed topic, demonstrating originality 40 points
Cost: Reasonable and lowest pricing in relation to the proposed Scope of Work 20 points

Offer Submission

To submit the offer, you must sign and complete Annex I – Procurement Form, Content Offer, Financial Form and Annex 2 – Declaration for Responsible Procurement. The Request for Quotes, along with the Annexes, can be downloaded here.

The complete offer with both Annexes filled and your CV must be returned to [email protected] by June 15, 2025 at 23:59 CET with the subject line: RfQ: Digital Rights Policy Paper Development.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Regional Camp in Sarajevo Boosts Journalists’ Skills in Crisis Reporting

Journalists from across the Western Balkans participated in a three-day training course on safe reporting, crisis journalism, and digital security.

From April 28 to 30, a regional journalism camp was held in Sarajevo, focusing on legally safe reporting, crisis journalism and digital security. The three-day training brought together 25 journalists from across the Western Balkans, providing them with essential tools to navigate a complex and increasingly hostile media landscape.

Participants engaged in dynamic hands-on training sessions, expert-led panel discussions and interactive risk assessment exercises. The sessions offered practical knowledge in legally safe reporting, coverage of crises such as protests and elections and strategies to defend themselves against digital surveillance and censorship.

The training was led by three international safety experts, Sharbil Nammour, Russ Draycott and Michael Buddle, in collaboration with the ACOS Alliance.

Sessions focused on risk assessment and building real-world resilience, emphasizing both physical preparedness and digital threat mitigation.

“Our approach is very much hands-on,” Draycott said. “This is real-world training. We’re getting delegates out of their seats, onto the floor, and teaching life-saving medical skills. These experiences prepare journalists for the real problems they face today.”

Journalists in the region frequently face defamation in tabloid and social media, alongside challenges in maintaining both digital and personal safety. The camp addressed these risks through a cross-sectoral approach, drawing on expertise from multiple fields. With such training, journalist are better prepared to find interesting and hard-reaching stories.

“Sometimes these stories bring them in to conflict and even danger and what we are trying to do is to make them understand and have tools to mitigate those dangers and threats against them, whether they are personal, security or digital. Medical training is a great life skill and something that will hopefully make them feel better to cope with anything they deal with,” Draycott added.

One of the highlights was the presentation of the new BIRN report, “Surveillance and Censorship in the Western Balkans.”

The findings, presented by Megi Reçi, BIRN’s Digital Rights Research Lead, paint a troubling picture. The report reveals that governments in the region are increasingly leveraging technology to suppress dissent, censor online content, restrict access to digital platforms and carry out both mass and targeted surveillance. Read more about it here.

The camp was a joint initiative of the EU-funded project “Strengthening Quality News and Independent Journalism in the Western Balkans and Turkey II”, the Open Society Foundation-funded project “Surveillance and Censorship in the Western Balkans”, and the Austrian Development Agency funded-project “Paper Trail for Better Governance IV”. It was organised by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN).

The training programme has been developed in partnership with A Culture of Safety (ACOS) Alliance. ACOS works to embed a culture of safety within journalism, advance safety standards, and help journalists and newsrooms implement the Freelance Journalist Safety Principles through their safety training initiatives and resources.