Active citizens fund: Announcement of an additional €1.45 million in grants to Civil Society organisations

Bodossaki Foundation and SolidarityNow, in their capacity as Fund Operator of the Active citizens fund programme for Greece, announce the allocation of an additional €1.45 million in grants to the programme.

Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, donor countries of the EEA Financial Mechanism 2014-2021, also known as EEA Grants, announced in June 2021 that, in the context of the allocation of an EEA Grants reserve fund for Greece, the Active citizens fund programme, aimed at strengthening the capacity of the Civil Society, would receive an additional €1.45 million in grants.

Bodossaki Foundation and SolidarityNow, in consultation with the EEA Financial Mechanism, have decided to allocate the additional grant to:

• One (1) new open call for proposals, with a budget of €661,387. The contents of this call will be specified in a forthcoming announcement.
• Seven (7) worthy projects, accounting for €1.42 million of grants in total, which come from the ranking list of runner-up projects. To ensure the funds to subsidise these projects, use will also be made of residual grant amounts available from projects that have already been completed, in conjunction with the additional grants allocated.

The 7 projects to be subsidised will benefit – among others – vulnerable groups of the population, such as young Roma women, women who are victims / survivors of sexual harassment at work, people in homelessness, sex workers, elderly people, young men and women from different cultural backgrounds, with different gender identities and sexual orientations, working women, students, volunteers and Civil Society organisations.

The selected projects are to be implemented in Athens, Thessaloniki, Patras, Ioannina, Heraklion (Crete), Larissa, Chania, Volos, Florina, Komotini, Nafplio, Chalkida, Thiva, and the islands of Paros and Kos. Part of the grants will be allocated to capacity building activities for the very organisations that will implement the projects, thus contributing to the sustainability of the programme’s results.

With a budget of €13.5 million for Greece, the Active citizens fund programme is funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway and forms part of the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism (EEA Grants) for the 2014-2021 programming period. The programme seeks to develop the long-term sustainability and capacity of Civil Society, with the aim of strengthening its role in promoting democratic participation, active citizenship and the protection of human rights.

The list of 7 grantees follows: (in alphabetical order, based on the name of the Project Promoter):

1) Project Promoter: ActionAid Hellas
Partner 1: Organization for the professional empowerment of women – Women on Top
Partner 2: Research Committee of Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences
Partner 3: Greek people management association
Partner 4: DATAWO
Project: Safe at Work

2) Project Promoter: Anima – Hellenic Wildlife Care Association
Partner 1: ARCHELON Τhe Sea Turtle Protection Society of Greece
Project: Establishment of a Cooperation Network of Organizations Acting in the Field of Wildlife Care in Greece

3) Project Promoter: Diotima – Centre for Research on Women’s Issues
Partner 1: Emantes International LGBTQIA+ Solidarity
Partner 2: Victoria Square Project
Project: Equagen – Young people for Gender Equality

4) Project Promoter: ELIX – Conservation Volunteers Greece
Partner 1: University of Patras
Partner 2: Proopsis Consulting S.A.
Partner 3: OTEAcademy
Project: EngAGE: A holistic project for the elderly on active ageing, volunteering and participation as vital part of the community

5) Project Promoter: Positivevoice – The Greek Association of People Living With Hiv
Project: Red Umbrella Athens – Empowering Sex Workers

6) Project Promoter: Praksis -Programs of Development Social Support and Medical Cooperation
Partner 1: Ithaca Laundry
Partner 2: Society for the Study of Human Sciences
Project: Bedrock of Participation for Homelessness

7) Project Promoter: Prolepsis, Non-Profit Civil Law Organization of Preventive Environmental and Occupational Medicine
Partner 1: Centre for Intercultural Education (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens)
Project: Empowerment of young Roma women in health, prevention and human rights: a new methodological approach