For the eighth year in a row, 10 promising journalists from across the region will present the investigative reports they developed at part of BIRN’s annual Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence scheme.
This year’s topic is ‘Generations’, and the 10 reporters who were selected to take part have been working hard for the past few months to complete their cross-border investigations.
The best three works will be chosen by a selection committee and awarded a cash prize of 4,000 euros for first place, 3,000 euros for second place and 1,000 euros for third place.
The while award winners will be announced at the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence closing event and award ceremony in Belgrade on November 28.
This year's final event will also be attended by more than 60 Fellowship alumni from nine countries in the region.
They will gather at the BFJE Alumni meeting, organised every second year with the aim of enabling networking and providing a platform for the sharing of experiences as well as providing funds for joint regional journalistic projects.
At a time when media across the region are under strong political and economic pressures, the Fellowship programme enables journalists to work on projects of their own choice with editorial and professional support, serving as an example which the media industry could emulate.
In order to foster quality reporting, initiate regional networking among journalists and advance balanced coverage on topics that are central to the region as well as to the EU, the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence programme is supported by the ERSTE Foundation and the Open Society Foundations, in cooperation with the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN.
Journalists from the Balkans are increasingly required to cover complex reform issues, taking in a regional and Europe-wide dimension. The fellowship provides editorial guidance, training and adequate funding to do so.
Prominent German, Austrian and Swiss newspapers, Die Süddeutsche Zeitung, Der Standard and Neue Zürcher Zeitung are media partners of the Balkan Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence programme. Besides being involved in the selection committee, they participate in seminars, support fellows if needed and seek to republish the best articles produced by them.
Please contact us for any additional information about the programme, or if you have suggestions, remarks or complaints about the web site and its content
The Selection Committee is comprised of seven prominent media figures from the Balkans and Europe. Each year, committee members read, evaluate and select story proposals for the fellowship.
Editors and journalists from across the region and beyond all work together to make the Balkan fellowship a truly international experience. Scroll down this page for more information on our editorial team.