Call for Proposals: Open Society New Response Projects

In 2006, the Think Tank Fund launched Open Society New Response Projects to support established policy centers in the region in confronting populist policies and addressing threats to open society. Over the last three years, the fund has underwritten some 20 initiatives addressing a range of issues including national strategies for minority integration in Latvia and Estonia, monitoring governmental performance in Slovakia, advocacy for civil oversight of security agencies in the Czech Republic, and monitoring political party financing in Hungary. This support continues, now extending to think tanks in Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

The support is focused on the promotion of policy research and alternatives surrounding political and social issues critical to effective and accountable democratic governance in these countries. Issues where a concerted response is needed include:

• migration and integration
• gender equality
• responsible governance at the national level
• counteracting illiberal tendencies
• involvement of youth in policy processes
• promoting the rule of law, and
• advancing monitoring systems for governmental institutions at the national level.

However, given that the issues vary from one country to the next, the fund would also consider proposals addressing threats to open society in other policy areas.

For more information, view the full Open Society New Response Projects grant guidelines.