Next Round of Microgrant Funding and Donating to Global Voices

Dear All,

Please consider this week's newsletter a pre-announcement to next Tuesday's official public announcement of our next round of funding. Five microgrants of up to $5,000 will be made available to individuals and organizations from under-represented communities who want to use new media tools to join in the online global conversation. Unlike our previous round of funding, which was specifically focused on health-related projects, this round of grants applies to all projects that use new media to empower under-represented communities. We will begin accepting applications (both via email and on the wiki) on Tuesday, December 23. The deadline will be Sunday, January 18.

We have found that these grants are often used most effectively when existing organizations and social groups use the money specifically to develop a new communication strategy using participatory media tools like blogs, podcasts, and online video. For example, a dedicated librarian in rural Malaysia might apply for a grant to purchase digital video cameras for her users to record videos about their community and upload them to their blogs.

Grantees are expected to host regular workshops to train participants how to start and maintain a weblog, upload and share digital photographs, and produce basic videos. Grantees are also required to post regular project evaluations and updates to the Rising Voices website.


In fact, there is no better way to think of great project idea than reading through the latest updates from our current grantee projects:

FOKO: Growing Strong As A Connected Community

With the help of FOKO bloggers many participants at the ‘Madagascar barcamp’ and the ‘E-Bit youth day ICT event’ learned about digital literacy and citizen media. FOKO bloggers are now taking charge of the outreach activities with a inspired community feeling and FOKO is soon spreading to more parts of Madagascar.

Online Filmmakers Offer New Glimpses of Iran

Despite several unforeseen hurdles, Iran Inside Out has launched an impressive website and published two videos by Iranian filmmakers showing Tehran’s underground heavy metal scene and reflecting on the prospects of peace for the country’s youngest generation.

A Campaign for Suso

A project nine months in the making, the bloggers from HiperBarrio are organizing a festive event this Saturday to raise funds in order to finish their all-volunteer construction of a new house for Manuel Salvador, formerly known as “Suso Mugre”.

Serbian Web Journalism School: Creating Future Trends in Journalism

Ljubisa Bojic and the Serbian Journalist Association are providing training to experienced and novice journalists in New Media and Social Web in an web journalism school in Belgrade, Serbia. The idea is that these journalists will learn to use new technologies like blog, photo and video blogging, podcasts etc. and apply them in their everyday work creating future trends in Serbian journalism. Rising Voices has provided micro-grant to support the outreach work from the second round of workshops.


We had planned on publicly announcing the next round of funding this week, but it has already been a very busy week on Global Voices as we've begun our first annual donation drive. Global Voices needs your financial support in order to remain independent, free and sustainable. Please consider giving a donation to declare your commitment to helping amplify stories, images and videos from ordinary people around the global who use the internet to communicate with their fellow world citizens!

Keep the world talking—donate to Global Voices!

Have a great weekend!

Best,

David

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