The CIVICUS Crisis Response Fund (CRF) supports civil society organisations and initiatives facing new or escalating restrictions on their work by providing funding for resiliency and advocacy actions.
It is designed to protect and strengthen civil society in the face of systemic threats, with a focus on safeguarding the rights to freedoms of assembly, expression, and association (FoAAE).
The CRF offers two types of grants:
- Advocacy/Sudden Opportunity Grants: These grants support responses to unexpected restrictions on civic space or seize opportunities to expand and strengthen the environment in which civil society operates, advancing rights or preventing backlash.
- Resiliency/Emergency Grants: These grants support organisations and groups facing immediate and ongoing threats, enabling them to enhance their resilience and implement security measures.
Learn More About The CRF below
Criteria to apply
The CRF welcomes applications from formal or informal civil society actors and consortia, including social movements. Applications are received at any time throughout the year and reviewed on a rolling basis.
Grants must be for a 3–6 months activity periods and include a maximum budget of roughly US$10,000 for individual organisation or US$20,000 for two or more co-applying organisations.
Partners must demonstrate that proposed activities respond to an urgent and/or escalating threat to freedoms of assembly, association, or expression and that those involved in the project face a high level of risk when exercising these rights.
Examples of activities include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Advocacy meetings and workshops to respond to restrictive laws governing FoAAE and influencing policymakers and key actors to amend restrictions or repeal these laws
- Actions responding to unexpected opportunities to raise concerns over restrictions
- Opportunities to expand civic space and enabling conditions for civil society, or for specific groups within the sector
- Conducting counter-narrative campaigns to respond to smear campaigns against civil society
- Harnessing opportunities in multilateral fora, like the United Nations or regional bodies, to put pressure on governments to uphold FoAAE
The CRF seeks to protect the civil society sector from systemic threats to its existence, with a specific focus on protecting the rights to freedom of assembly, association and expression, rather than addressing individual cases. We fully recognize the serious challenges faced by human rights defenders and deeply appreciate your commitment to this important work under difficult circumstances. However, please note that the types of support outlined below fall outside the CRF’s funding scope.
The CRF does not support:
- Individual assistance, medical treatment and/or emergency stipends
- Relocation support
- Direct service delivery and/or direct financial assistance to individuals
The CRF is not designed or equipped to respond to such requests, and therefore, we are unable to provide the types of assistance mentioned. Maintaining a clearly defined and limited scope of support is an essential part of our do-no-harm approach, ensuring that assistance is provided responsibly and without creating additional risks or unmet expectations.
Interested in Applying?
- Download our application pack to prepare your submission.
- Submit your application via our online application portal.
