Fundraising for Civic Space and Democracy
Fundraising How can fundraisers respond to growing threats to civic space and democratic values across Europe? What role can crowdfunding, public engagement, and people-powered giving play in defending rights, freedoms, and independent civil society?
This resource hub brings together essential articles, toolkits, and case studies to help fundraising professionals navigate this urgent challenge — and mobilize support where it’s needed most.
Explore the materials below to learn, act, and advocate:
Spotlight on civic space
Poland: Restoring the meaning of democracy
Bulgaria: repressive legislative proposals & an unstable political environment
Shrinking spaces in Germany – a country undergoing change
Italy: civic regression & organizations’ resilience
Civil society’s response to Slovakia’s democratic backslide: mobilising resources & resistance
Shrinking civic space in the Netherlands: a growing trend
Resource materials
- EFA Actors supporting civil society and democracy in Europe (Members only)
- Europe’s shrinking civic space and CSO reactions: what lessons have we learned? | Safeguarding European Civic Space (La Cause) (Members only)
- Civil Society State of the Union 2025 (Civil Society Europe)
- Civic Space Report 2025 | 2024 (European Civic Forum)
- Democracy Report 2025: 25 Years of Autocratization – Democracy Trumped? (Varieties of Democracy)
- Foreign Influence Registration Laws and Civil Society: An Analysis and Responses (ICNL)
- Mapping Shrinking Civic Space In Europe (Giada Negri, Filip Pazderski)
- Civil Society is Here to Stay! A Report on the Shrinking Civic Space Project (2019-2023) (Rupert Graf Strachwitz, Siri Hummel)
Mobilization
- Immunising against conspiracy thinking on NGOs (ICPA) (Members only)
- Uniting for democracy: How we can work together to address challenges to people’s rights and civil society (ECNL)
- How You Can Protect Democracy – 29 concrete actions you can take right now to protect democracy (Protect Democracy)
Events
- EFA European Fundraising4Democracy Tour: Online Special – 18 September 2025 (online)
- EFA Skillshare – 20-21 November 2025 (Edinburgh, UK)
- EFA Survey on Shrinking Space for Civil Society – July-August 2025 (Members only)
- EFA Webinar on Shrinking Space for Civil Society – 1 July 2025 (online) (Members only)
- International Conference Fundraising in Challenging Times (Fundraising Club Bulgaria, BCNL) – 5 June 2025 (Sofia, Bulgaria)
> Fundraisers on the frontlines of democracy: Lessons from Bulgaria’s breakthrough gathering - #FRO2025 – Fundraising Online (The Resource Alliance) – 14 May 2025 (online)
Funding opportunities
- 2025 Democracy Briefer for Funders: What’s Happening to European Democracy and What Funders Can Do About It | Inspiration Deck for Funders (Philea)
- Cross-Border Funding Outflows: Spotlight on Europe (Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy)
- We the People: A Philanthropic Guide to Strengthening Democracy (University of Pennsylvania)
- Hedging for Sustainability: Twenty Revenue Streams for Democracy, Rights, and Governance Non-Governmental Organizations (Open Government Partnership)
- Donor Finder (Civicus)
- Funding Opportunities (Civitates)
- How to Identify the Right Donors for Your Democracy Project (fundsforNGOs)
- Latest Grants and Resources for Democracy and Good Governance (Members only)
#Fundraising4Democracy
If you are aware of other relevant resources or events, please let us know at eduard.marcek@efa-net.eu. Thank you!