2024 CIVICUS Digital Action Lab (DAL)

Digital Action Lab (DAL), an initiative empowering civil society actors in countries facing restricted civic space, with the skills, resources and confidence to take effective action for inclusive democracy.

The mission is to cultivate real-world pilot projects that strengthen the organising, advocacy, and campaign capacities of participating civil society groups in the Global South, including via enhanced collaboration with local allies. By doing so, they will develop the knowledge, approaches, and tools needed to support even more pro-democracy organisations.

CIVICUS will use an open nomination and application process to select DAL cohorts of up to ten civil society organisations. Over a nine month period, these participants will work with the CIVICUS team, technical experts, and each other to develop a fully funded project which will be delivered in their local setting. Grants will range from $10,000 to $30,000 USD. Participants will also receive extensive coaching and additional non-financial support throughout the process, along with opportunities for engagement with wider networks and events. There will be three DAL cohorts between 2024 and 2026.

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Benefits of Digital Action Lab (DAL)

1. Create and control your DAL experience: Participate in an initial in-person co-creation workshop to define your DAL cohort’s joint priorities and ways of working together, along with a discovery process to identify the focus of your specific pilot project.
2. Tailored skill enhancement and confidence building: Seize the chance to improve your skills through tailored workshops and training plans which address the unique needs and challenges of your organisation. DAL is committed to building your confidence, empowering you with the knowledge and expertise  to leverage new digital opportunities for your work.
3. Take existing work to the next level: Rather than start from scratch, DAL projects will focus on enhancing your current strategies and approaches, to maximise impact and sustainability. You already know what is needed to deliver real change for inclusive democracy. The DAL will simply help you to unlock your digital potential.
4. Explore and test digital solutions: Receive funding and support to find the digital tools and approaches you need to overcome persistent challenges or turbo-charge your existing practices. This could be directly related to enhancing your organising, advocacy, and campaign work, or strengthening the organisational systems and capacities these activities depend on.
5. Financial support for participation and implementation: Access a grant ranging from $10,000 to $30,000 USD to fund both your costs of participating in the DAL and the implementation of your DAL pilot project.
6. Structured format for meaningful engagement: Participate in the DAL via online collaboration platforms, virtual workshops, localised implementation activities, and at least one in-person workshop. This combination of settings and formats aims to maximise opportunities for engagement with the DAL team, peer-learning, and community building.
7. Documentation and knowledge sharing: Contribute to the creation of case studies, infographics, videos and other knowledge products that document your approaches, successes, and lessons learned. Your experiences will be shared through the DDI knowledge hub and broader CIVICUS strategic networks, aiding other civil society actors in their efforts to expand civic and democratic freedoms.
8. Showcase progress and networking opportunities: Participate in a DAL achievement summit at the end of the initiative, along with additional opportunities for engaging wider networks, including communities and events like I4C, Vuka!, RightsCon, and more. Connect with like-minded peers, share successes and challenges, and foster collaborations to further enhance your work.

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