The Civic Innovation Fund (CIF) is a unique European pooled fund launched by THE CIVICS Innovation Hub. It aims to support start-up ideas in civic education that promote resilience, diversity, and collaboration in democracy. The fund focuses on pioneering new ideas in civil society, enhancing their visibility, and integrating them into NECE, a pan-European network of civic educators. CIF provides funding between €10,000 and €12,000 per project for a 12-month period. It primarily targets young civic educators (under 35) and young NGOs (less than 3 years old). Projects should strengthen democratic competencies that promote participation, cohesion, and resilience. Ideas can range from workshops and cultural interventions to apps and augmented reality storyboards. To be eligible, projects must involve a transnational partnership with at least one partner from Europe. The main implementing organization should be based in a European country. The fund prioritizes diversity, interdisciplinarity, and inclusiveness in project selection. Recent funding opportunities have focused on advancing media and digital literacy, supported by the King Baudouin Foundation, and financial education for broader citizenship, supported by the ERSTE Foundation. The Civic Innovation Fund is also supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung and Porticus Amsterdam C.V.
The Civic Innovation Fund (CIF) is a unique European pooled fund launched by THE CIVICS Innovation Hub. It aims to pioneer new ideas in civil society, enhance their visibility, and integrate them into NECE, a growing pan-European network of civic educators. The fund supports start-up ideas in civic education that apply interdisciplinary and inclusive approaches which lead to greater resilience, diversity, and collaboration in democracy.
Each project receives between 10,000 € and 12,000 € for piloting, incubation, and scaling up for the period of 12 months. The CIF aims to support primary young civic educators (under 35) and young NGOs (under 3 years of existence). The awarded startups also qualify as informal NECE Impact Spots, amplifying their ideas and promoting non-formal civic education in their countries. Additionally, chosen projects are involved in all NECE activities.
All the projects CIF has supported can be found here.