The IJ4EU fund has launched a series of public masterclasses designed to help journalists craft work plans for cross-border investigations, forge collaborations and write stronger applications for grant funding.
Run by Arena for Journalism in Europe, an Amsterdam-based foundation committed to supporting collaborative journalism, the free masterclasses will take place several months before the deadline for each IJ4EU call for proposals.
The masterclasses are part of a new partnership between the IJ4EU fund and Arena, which organises the annual Dataharvest – The European Investigative Journalism Conference.
The IJ4EU consortium believes the online seminars will be of special benefit to freelancers and newsrooms with limited experience conducting complex investigations on transnational subjects.
“We hope they’ll be useful to those who have an idea but need a bit of help proceeding — whether that means refining their concept, seeking partners in other countries or securing funding from IJ4EU or other sources,” said Timothy Large, head of independent media programmes at the International Press Institute, which leads the IJ4EU consortium.
Two masterclasses will take place in July, ahead of the first call for applications for the 2022/23 edition of IJ4EU in September. The reason for scheduling two masterclasses is to maximise opportunities for attendance.
Please click on the desired date to register:
Registration is open until two days before each seminar.
The Cross-Border Masterclasses will be run by Arena Director Brigitte Alfter and Trine Smistrup, a journalism trainer and director of the Dataharvest conference.
“In a hands-on seminar, we’ll cover the steps for a successful IJ4EU grant application,” said Alfter, author of the definitive Cross-Border Collaborative Journalism: A Step-By-Step Guide.
“Together with colleagues from across Europe, you can develop your story ideas and discuss how to best prepare your research and publication plans for a transnational collaboration and cross-border audience.”
Two more masterclasses will follow in the autumn, ahead of the second round of IJ4EU applications in January.
Fellowships for Dataharvest
Along with masterclasses, the new IJ4EU-Arena partnership will result in increased opportunities for networking and learning.
Eighteen fellowships will be available for IJ4EU grantees to attend Dataharvest in the Belgian town of Mechelen in May 2023. Arena will also invite eight IJ4EU grantees from the current and previous IJ4EU editions as speakers at the conference.
Dataharvest has a reputation as Europe’s most practical conference for cross-border investigative journalism, allowing participants to roll up their sleeves and take part in classes and workshops on every conceivable subject related to the field.
“We are very much looking forward to this cooperation, as the Dataharvest community is the obvious network to be in for IJ4EU grantees, and the Arena team has highly specialised competences in the field of facilitating and training collaborative journalism projects,” Alfter said.
Stay tuned for more details of future Cross-Border Masterclasses and Dataharvest fellowship opportunities.
Photo by Frédéric Moreau de Bellaing