Our work

Power for Democracies researches threats to liberal democracy, evaluates effective tactics, and recommends civil society initiatives to support.

Our research

Our research prioritises countries that will benefit most from our support. We then analyse pro-democracy tactics and strategies to assess their effectiveness at tackling democratic threats and enhancing democratic resilience.
Our methodology

We consider four criteria when prioritising countries: importance, which refers to a country’s influence and population size; threat, meaning the scale and extent of current or potential authoritarian actions; tractability, or the capacity of civil society within that country to resist authoritarianism and foster change; and opportunity, which includes moments of potential that could tip the balance toward democratic progress, such as upcoming events.
We focus on civil society initiatives that are likely to deliver meaningful democratic outcomes. We assess these initiatives based on both their potential impact and the strength of the supporting evidence. Our mixed-methods approach incorporates a variety of sources, including expert insights, research literature, strategic analysis, quantitative data, and other evaluative tools, to ensure that our decisions are both informed and contextually grounded.
Looking ahead, we will continue to adopt a range of approaches, recognising that progress demands adaptability.
Our evaluations

We also conduct detailed evaluations to assess the impact of civil society initiatives on key democratic outcomes, taking into account resource limitations and realities on the ground.
Our recommendations

The first donor recommendations in our portfolio of highly effective civil society initiatives which counter authoritarianism in strategically important countries are now available. We continue to evaluate and will regularly update the portfolio with new recommendations.
Read our recommendations

FAQs on our work

How can I donate to the civil society organisations you recommend?

Our portfolio of recommendations for donors will grow as we continue to identify highly relevant civil society initiatives in priority countries. If you’d like to support these efforts, you can donate directly through Effektiv Spenden’s Defending Democracy Fund, a straightforward way to channel your contributions to the initiatives. We are building partnerships with donation platforms in additional countries, so that supporters around the world will be able to contribute with ease. English: https://effektiv-spenden.org/en/defending-democracy/ German: https://effektiv-spenden.org/demokratie-verteidigen/

How can I get involved in your research?

If you are a research institution, think-tank, or in any other capacity interested in our work, we would love to hear from you. You can either fill in our contact form on this website or email us at hello@powerfordemocracies.org.

How can I get my civil society organisation recommended by Power for Democracies?

Power for Democracies focuses on current and emerging threats to democracy and identifies the most relevant civil society organisations and initiatives working to counter them. If you believe your organisation is one of those, get in touch with us at hello@powerfordemocracies.org.

What types of civil society organisations are you interested in evaluating?

We seek to evaluate and recommend a wide range of different civil society actors that strengthen crucial aspects of democracy, including journalists, unions, and think-tanks. The groups we will recommend are politically non-partisan, although they may campaign on specific issues.

How are civil society initiatives chosen for evaluation?

We focus on civil society initiatives that our systematic research indicates are likely to deliver meaningful democratic outcomes. We assess these initiatives in terms of both their potential impact and the strength of the supporting evidence. Our mixed-methods approach incorporates a variety of sources, including expert insights, research literature, strategic analysis, quantitative data, and other evaluative tools. This ensures our decisions are both informed and contextually grounded.

What’s the evaluation process for civil society organisations?

We understand how valuable the time and energy of civil society organisations is, and we have designed the evaluation process with ease in mind. The process includes an initial call; completion of a datasheet; and a series of follow-up questions.

What happens after evaluation?

If your project meets our impact criteria, we will recommend it for funding to our donor network. Our recommendation will include an overview of the national context in which you operate, and more detail on the impact of your work on liberal democracy in your country.

How likely is it that a recommended organisation will receive funding?

We only approach an organisation for evaluation if we have meaningful indication about its impact and eligibility for recommendation. Once our recommendations have been decided, we work with our donor network and the implementing civil society organisation to coordinate the allocation of funds collected by our donor network.

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Our work

Our research

Our methodology

Our evaluations

Our recommendations

FAQs on our work

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