NED makes more than 1,000 grants each year to nongovernmental groups in more than 90 countries. Behind each grant is a story about people who share a common desire to live in a world that is free and democratic, and who are willing to dedicate and often risk their lives to achieve that goal.
Read and listen to the compelling stories of a few outstanding NED grantees as they talk about their daily struggles to advance freedom and democracy in their countries.
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Kyrgyzstan: a "Glimmer of Hope"
Nearly two years after the explosion of interethnic violence that targeted Uzbeks in southern Kyrgyzstan, it is difficult and dangerous for activists to expose the region’s tensions due to the threat of violent backlash. But many NED grantees – especially in the south where ethnic tensions are high – are undeterred as they monitor and publicize the country’s human rights situation, and provide legal assistance to victims of torture, intimidation, and hate crimes. :: MORE
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Czechoslovakia: “If the Culture Survives….”
“If the culture survives, then so too does the nation,” is the motto of Prague’s Kampa Museum, where the exhibition “Archive of Freedom,” opened on September 20, 2011. The exhibit, which runs through Nov. 6, 2011, celebrates the 25th anniversary of legendary NED grantee Czechoslovak Documentation Center, “one of the most important exile institutions of the second half of the 20th century.” :: MORE
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Revolutionary Media in Burma
The Burmese government's brutal crackdown on the monk-led “Saffron Revolution” sought to silence opposition voices. But the Democratic Voice of Burma is risking everything to make sure new ideas are heard through independent media. :: MORE
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Russia: Polling for Democracy, The Yuri Levada Analytical Center
The Yuri Levada Analytical Center, a NED partner since 2009, documents trends in public opinion in Russia. Named for its founder, a well-known Russian sociologist who was stripped of his professorship in 1969 for “ideological mistakes,” provides timely insight on pressing sociopolitical issues. :: MORE
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Sudan: Finding Democratic Solutions
The Al-Khatim Adlan Centre for Enlightenment and Human Development (KACE), a NED partner in Sudan since 2007, was founded in memory Al-Khatim Adlan, one of Sudan’s great progressive political thinkers. KACE is committed to finding democratic answers to Sudan’s long-entrenched conflicts and testing the limits of the greater political openness envisioned by Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement. :: MORE
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Azerbaijan: Being More Than a Number
Adnan Hajizade is in jail for a YouTube satire, but his work continues to inspire young Azerbaijanis who long for democracy. :: MORE
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Engaging Youth to Bridge Ethnic Divisions
Olang Sana of Citizens Against Violence describes how his organization was formed to stop political and electoral violence in Kenya. :: MORE
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Working to End Torture in Liberia
NED grantee Rescue Alternatives Liberia (RAL) is partnering with Liberian legislators to bring anti-torture legislation into law as Liberia moves beyond war atrocities and blood diamonds.
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Forward or Backward in the Balkans?
Fifteen years after the genocide at Srebrenica, NED grantees Nataša Kandić of the Humanitarian Law Center in Belgrade and Anisa Sućeska-Vekić of the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network in Sarajevo speak to Democracy Digest about growing tensions in Bosnia, and the importance of truth and transitional justice in the Balkans. :: MORE
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Iran: Two Sisters, One Cause
Roya and Ladan Boroumand describe how they honor their family's legacy and continue their father's fight for Iranian democracy from outside the country. :: MORE
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