Rights Reframed: Media Advocacy Mentorship Program

2019 Call for Applications:
Visual Media Projects that Address Housing as it
Relates to Entrenched Corruption

Duration of program: September 2019 - June 2020

 

NMAP is now inviting applications for a 10-month mentorship program designed to support activists in creating and distributing media advocacy projects that challenge the way human rights are framed in Central Asia and the South Caucasus. Over the course of the program, participants will produce short media works for distribution in their own countries.

The media produced may be in any format that can be shared with the public (e.g. short-form video, web-docs, interactive or multimedia installation, AR/VR, animation, crowd-sourced community storytelling, photography, etc.) around the theme of housing and its relationship to entrenched corruption—an issue that has reached critical urgency in both the South Caucasus and Central Asia—and should aim to support a larger, ongoing campaign or advocacy goal. 

In many parts of the world, human rights and social justice issues struggle to overcome a negative public image. This is partly because states have sought to suppress support for human rights by controlling its image on mainstream media outlets, but also because positive counter messaging struggles to engage audiences, and forms of alternative distribution are under explored.

The Rights Reframed Mentorship Program aims to improve attitudes towards social issues by experimenting with new approaches to storytelling and exploring more creative forms of audience engagement.

This program is open to participants affiliated with human rights organizations or individual activists, artists, media makers, and visual storytellers who are passionate about human rights issues and want to positively influence attitudes towards these issues by experimenting with new narratives that go beyond traditional approaches.

Over the course of the program, participants will:

·  Produce and distribute one media-based advocacy piece on a human rights issue of their choosing
 

·  Receive in-depth mentoring on media advocacy and production from NMAP and regional mentors
 

·  Form focus groups and conduct guided research on local media landscapes and current biases that discredit human rights issues
 

·  Participate in one to two-hour remote meetings twice a month with a media production mentor, who will support participants in the conception, production, and distribution of their media
 

·  Receive a small grant to produce their projects

The mentorship program will begin with a week-long regional kick-off meeting in mid-November 2019, followed by a second week-long convening in March 2020 focused on reviewing first versions of each project, including screening rough cuts, and planning for distribution. Travel expenses to these meetings will be covered by the program.

Participants will be expected to commit an average of 10-15 hours per week during the program, including regular online meetings with mentors and independent production work. Production hours are flexible and may be worked around a participant’s individual schedule. No relocation is required to participate in the program.

Selection criteria

The program is seeking six participants from the following countries in Central Asia and the Caucasus:

·  Armenia

·  Azerbaijan

·  Georgia

·  Kazakhstan

·  Kyrgyzstan

·  Tajikistan

·  Turkmenistan

·  Uzbekistan

Preference will be given to maintaining a geographical and gender balance among participants as well as unique and creative project concepts that explore the issue of shrinking civic space.

Applicant Qualifications

·  An awareness of the human rights situation in their county and the current negative messaging around human rights issues
 

·  A creative project idea that addresses housing and/or its relationship to entrenched corruption
 

·  A capacity for and openness to reframing current human rights messaging in their country
 

·  A commitment to human rights work/issues; participants with an established network in the human rights space and/or contacts in local or national media are strongly preferred
 

·  Some knowledge of media production is preferred though strong project concepts are the most important factor
 

·  Working knowledge of English language is a strong asset, but not required

Applicants representing ethnic, religious, linguistic, and/or sexual minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Application Forms

·  English Version

·  Russian Call for Applications

·  Russian Application Form

 

Application Instructions + Deadline

Email the completed application and your CV as attachments to [email protected] by Sunday September 22, 2019 at midnight EST with the subject line “Application for Rights Reframed 2019.”

Those accepted to the program will be notified by Friday October 4, 2019.