Incidental Emergency Grants 

How do I apply for an emergency grant?
To apply for an emergency grant, you can always reach out to ddp@hivos.org for initial questions or advice. We will guide you through the application process, and see what we can do to support you. If you want to know more first, below we explain the requirements and what information we will need from you. However, sending an initial email is enough to get the process started.

To apply for an emergency grant, send an email to ddp@hivos.org.

For who?
Incidental Emergency grants are for rapid support to journalists, human rights defenders, NGOs, activists and bloggers who are facing an urgent digital emergency  because of their online activities.

What kind of projects?
The emergency grants can provide financial emergency assistance that can be used for mitigating digital threats or digital emergencies by way of:

– digital security audit for organizations
– equipment replacements
– secure hosting
– VPN connections
– safe internet connections
– finding legal representation
– payment of legal fees
– other types of urgently needed expenses

Scope of the grant
The incidental emergency grants:

• Range from 1 – 10,000 Euro
• Run for a maximum period of 4 months
• Open to individuals and organizations under attack
• Process time of proposal max. of 2 weeks

Note that projects are only eligible if there is a digital emergency situation. This type of grant will not support projects addressing digital security issues that are more structural in nature.

Emergency grant process
The grant making process for Emergency Grants consist of the following steps;

1. Potential grantees can submit their proposal by sending an email to ddp@hivos.org
2. In your email, explain the following (don’t mention any sensitive info if your project is confidential):
   – name of the project
   – project goal
   – country it takes place in
   – duration of the project (max. 4 months)
   – grant budget requested + explanation
   – your name / you’re organization’s name
   – aim and scope of the activities you/your organization is doing
   – names + contact details of at least 2 references
3. An initial assessment is made on the DDPs eligibility criteria
4. The DDP secretariat will review and approve or reject the proposal

The DDP secretariat will inform the potential grantee of the outcome. For questions, email us at ddp@hivos.org

You can also send us encrypted emails, find our PGP keys here: Sanne’s key, Wieke’s key, Frerieke’s key

Sustainable Emergency Grants 

If you want to know about funding opportunities for Emergency Grants, please send an email to ddp@hivos.org

For who?
– NGOs
– human rights organizations
– media organizations

What kind of projects?
– Improve their digital security apparatus
– Set up temporary helpdesks
– Test and research specific threats
– Implement safe infrastructure
– Give security trainings
– Temporary support which is needed to mitigate a specific digital emergency situation

Note that the support can only be awarded if it concerns a project in internet repressive and transitional countries.

Scope of the Grant:
The Emergency Grant (sustainable):

• Ranges from 10,000 – 50,000 Euro
• Runs for a maximum period of one year
• Open to organizations who are/were under attack
• Process time of full proposal max. of 4 month

Sustainable Emergency grant process
The grant making process for direct support grants consist of the following steps;

1. Potential grantees can submit their proposal by sending an email to ddp@hivos.org
2. In your email, explain the following (don’t mention any sensitive info if your project is confidential):
   – name of the project
   – project goal
   – country it takes place in
   – duration of the project (max. 1 year)
   – grant budget requested + explanation
   – your name / you’re organization’s name
   – aim and scope of the activities you/your organization is doing
   – names + contact details of at least 2 references
3. An initial assessment is made on the DDPs eligibility criteria
4. The DDP secretariat will review and approve or reject the proposal

The DDP secretariat will inform the potential grantee of the outcome. If you have questions, send an email to ddp@hivos.org

You can also send us encrypted emails, find our PGP keys here: Sanne’s key, Wieke’s key, Frerieke’s key

Capacity Building Grants

If you want to know about funding opportunities for Capacity Building Grants, please send an email to ddp@hivos.org

For who?
– NGOs
– media organizations
– human rights defenders

What kind of projects? 
– Strengthening the emergency response capacity
– Improving infrastructure, software and hardware to mitigate digital emergencies
– Personal protection for anyone facing digital threats or are targeted due to their online presence
– Other strategic investments in the digital emergency response sector

Scope of the Grant
The Capacity Building Grants:

• Range between 20,000 – 250,000 Euro
• Run till maximum the end of 2019
• Executing an independent financial audit is mandatory as part of the project
• Process time of full proposal max. of 4 months

Strategic grant process
The grant making process for strategic grants consist of the following steps;

1. Potential grantees can submit their proposal to the DDP secretariat through email to ddp@hivos.org stating:
   – Goals
   – Objectives and outputs
   – Needs assessments
   – Context and risk analysis
   – Budget
   – M&E
   – Project work plan
   – Confidentiality classification with explanation
   – Sustainability
   – Name organization
   – When was the organization established
   – Organization structure
   – Objectives/vision/mission
   – Core areas of expertise
   – Experience/track record
   – Time/period
2. An initial assessment is made on the DDPs eligibility criteria
3. The DDP’s donors  will review and approve or reject the proposal
4. The DDP secretariat will inform the potential grantee of the outcome

You can also send us encrypted emails, find our PGP keys here: Sanne’s key, Wieke’s key, Frerieke’s key

Eligibility criteria

All potential grantees will be assessed by the DDP and the Independent Investment Committee on a number of eligibility criteria:

• Provide emergency response to urgent digital threats to critical internet users and/or keeping the internet open and free
• Activities concern repressive and transitional environments
• Activities are benefitting internet critical users, independent media, human rights defenders, journalists, bloggers and/or activists
• Need and context assessment
• Technical need, feasibility and security
• Value for money
• Complementarity
• Organizational track record

Projects that the Digital Defenders Partnership cannot support are projects that are:

– Projects that  do not target internet repressive contexts
– General Internet Freedom Policy
– Internet Freedom lobby
– General digital security training
– New tech tools from newly established organisations
– Duplication

Examples of grants provided by Digital Defenders Partnership

• Establishing safe internet access through VPNs
• DDoS mitigation for websites under attack
• Replacement of equipment and retrieval of hijacked accounts
• Setting up temporary digital security helpdesks
• Undertake malware analysis
• Support for organizations that provide legal support to human rights defenders under threat
• Support for digital security consultants in specific regions
• Secure hosting for very high risk websites

The DDP also launched its Digital First Aid Kit, a self-assessment tool to guide you what to do if you face digital threats.

The DDP and its partners have been active in countries in Central Asia, Middle East, South East Asia Africa and South America.

This program aims to contribute to sustainable security for human rights organisations in repressive countries. Carefully selected organizations in repressive countries will undergo a fully customized organizational digital safety & security transition, guided by experienced digital security experts. Depending on the organisations’ need the fellowship includes holistic training to the staff, designing of security policies, and migrating software to a secure system.  

Goals

1. To scale-up the digital security capacity and information integrity of organizations that support HRDs and CSAs who are exercising their rights to freedom of expression online.
2. To support digital security Fellows (trainers and consultants) to work within these organizations.
3. To complement the existing ecosystem of person-to-person assistance and trainings, while bringing in technical expertise traditionally outside the reach of these organizations.

How does it work?
Selected organizations will receive over the period of 6-8 months* constructive assistance to create a secure environment for their employees and thereby the CSAs and HRDs they work with. The first interaction with an organization will likely be in the form of a visit by a digital security trainer/consultant (Fellow) to do an initial assessment and discuss the needs and possibilities within the organization in the area of digital integrity. The Fellow will then follow-up with the organization remotely to provide any support needed. A so-called ‘champion’ inside the organisation is assigned to lead the transition process and create an internal support base.

Subsequent interventions will largely depend on the first visit, and the implementation plan that was created in agreement between the Fellow and the organization, including some of the following:

• Digital integrity considerations at strategic level
• Information policy development
• Digital integrity and security capacity building measures
• Awareness raising and (re-)training processes
• Mentoring and support for the identified staff ‘champion’

The various interventions are all performed by the Fellow, with support from fellows within the program’s pool, including mentor Fellows who will support, advise and co-facilitate the activities.

Fellows are likely to be career professionals with a proven track record in information security, and the Fellowship will give them a chance to share their skills and experience with a human rights organization, which have identified a gap or need in their digital security situation within their organization.

Creative Commons

As we believe in a free and open Internet, this Fellowship is based on a Creative Commons, whereby any institute or organization is free to use the format of this fellowship and we encourage others to re-use and publish our information. Already Open Technology Foundation has made use of this Creative Commons format, and you can apply for a Fellowship grant on their website as well.

If you have interest to apply as an organisation for the fellowship, and undergo a security transition, please send email to: digitalintegrity@hivos.org. In your email, explain the following:

• name of the organisation
• foundation year
• aim and scope of the activities you/your organization is doing
• number of staff
• contact details