What is the IJ4EU Impact Award?
The IJ4EU Impact Award recognises outstanding investigative journalism carried out by cross-border teams in Europe. Each year, it honours three cross-border investigations that demonstrate collaboration, journalistic quality, innovation, and tangible impact with a cash prize of €5,000 each.
It encourages journalists to work collaboratively across frontiers in European countries that have signed up to the full cross-sectoral strand of the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme, which provides core funding for IJ4EU.
Who manages the award?
The IJ4EU Impact Award is managed by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF). It is also supported by the International Press Institute (IPI) and the European Journalism Centre (EJC).
What are the eligibility criteria for the nominations?
- The award is open to cross-border investigations published via any credible medium.
- Nominated investigations must have been published the previous year.
- Nominated investigations must involve journalists based in at least two European countries that have signed up to the full cross-sectoral strand of the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme, which provides core funding for IJ4EU. Team members based in other countries may also be part of the nominated team, provided the core geographical requirement is met.
- Nominated investigations need to highlight issues of common interest for European countries, and be seen to have strengthened European media.
- Nominated investigations may have been published in any language. However, for investigations not published in English, a translation in English of the core investigation/summary must be provided.
- Nominations must include any significant challenge to the honesty, accuracy or fairness of an entry, such as published letters, corrections, retractions as well as responses by the relevant newspaper or website.
- For a detailed description of the eligibility criteria please click here.
What are the geographical eligibility requirements?
All nominations must involve journalists or news organisations based in at least two European countries that have signed up to the full cross-sectoral strand of the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme, which provides core funding for IJ4EU.
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That includes all 27 EU member states and the following non-EU countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Ukraine.
What does cross-border collaboration mean?
Nominated projects need to involve team members in at least two eligible countries.
Who can submit a nomination?
Nominations can be submitted by journalists, news organisations, or team members involved in cross-border investigative projects. The award recognises both the investigation itself and the team behind it.
Can someone from a ‘non-eligible’ country be nominated?
Yes, it is possible for journalists or news organisations from outside eligible countries (see above) to be nominated under the following conditions:
Their involvement should not have been too substantial in the investigation;
- Their involvement had to be necessary and relevant for the investigation;
- They were not the lead of the investigation; and
- The rest of the team already fulfilled the basic geographic criteria.
- In addition, keep in mind that the spirit of the IJ4EU Impact Award is to support and feature investigative journalism in the European Union and on topics of relevance to EU citizens. Therefore, projects involving journalists or media organisations outside the EU/candidate countries should ensure that the topic of their project was directly relevant for EU audiences.
If you have doubts, please contact ECPMF at impact-award@ecpmf.eu. We will give you our best pre-assessment. Keep in mind that the final decision will always be made by an independent jury.
Can the nominated topic be related to an issue outside the EU?
See above. It is possible to investigate an issue that has relevance or ramifications outside the EU/candidate countries, so long as the investigation remains directly relevant for EU audiences. The investigation can (partially) take place outside of EU/candidate countries so long as doing so is necessary and relevant.
To see examples of previous funded projects that were partially conducted outside the EU/candidate countries or on issues relevant to other regions, see here and here.
The final decision on whether a project sufficiently fulfills the spirit of promoting investigative journalism in the EU on topics of relevance for the EU public lies with the independent jury.
Do nominated projects need to have been funded by IJ4EU grants?
No. Any cross-border journalistic project can be nominated as long as it meets the eligibility criteria.
Can I nominate myself?
Yes. You can nominate your own cross-border investigative project if it fulfils the application requirements.
Can I nominate someone else?
Yes. You can nominate any cross-border investigative project that fulfils the application requirements.
If you want to nominate a cross-border investigative project in which you have not taken part as a team member, please make sure that you are familiar enough with the project to be able to provide all the necessary information and documents required. Please be sure to get the consent of the team involved in the project for the nomination.
Can I nominate more than one investigation?
Yes.
How can I nominate an investigation?
- All nominations must be submitted in English via our secure Good Grants platform.
- Good Grants is a free-to-use secure platform for submission and storage. It is ISO/IEC 27001 certified and GDPR compliant, and has multi-factor authentication, encrypted data, multi-tier backups and a secure multi-server architecture in VPC.
- After you have read the full eligibility and nomination information, follow these steps to make a nomination:
- Access the Good Grants application via the link provided.
- Each submitter will need to create a personal user account to ensure that the nomination can be submitted securely and so as not to jeopardise those involved.
- Once your account is created, log in and select IJ4EU Impact Award.
- Fill out the nomination form following any instructions on our website. You can save the nomination form and return to it until you have completed it and are ready to submit.
- When you are finished, submit your nomination. You will receive a confirmation email. Once the application is submitted, it can no longer be edited.
- Only nominations received via the Good Grants platform in English by the stated date and time will be considered. If you have difficulties, contact us at impact-award@ecpmf.eu.
Can I send in my nomination by email?
No. All nominations must be submitted through our Good Grants platform. This is in the best interest of nominations for reasons of data security and privacy protection.
What supporting materials can I include?
You can include:
- Evidence of impact (links, media coverage, documents)
- Letters or quotes from qualified third parties endorsing the project
- References in books, reports, newspapers, academic papers
- Documentation of corrections, retractions, or responses from publishing outlets
How are winners selected?
An independent jury selects the winner among the eligible nominations. The winners are announced at the UNCOVERED Conference, IJ4EU’s annual gathering for the investigative journalism community.
What are the selection criteria for the award?
The jury’s decision will take account of the following criteria:
Impact of the nominated investigation
Journalistic quality of the nominated investigation
Innovative use of cross-border journalism to cover a topic of public interest
Newsworthiness and added value of the nominated investigation to public discourse in the EU
Storytelling techniques
Potential of the nominated investigation to inspire similar cross-border journalism and contribute to the sustainability of investigative journalism in the EU.
When can I submit a nomination?
Nominations open each year in February and run for eight weeks. Exact dates are announced in advance on our website, social media, and via our newsletter.
How do I submit a nomination?
All nominations are submitted online via the Good Grants platform, a secure, GDPR-compliant system. Each nominator must create a personal account to submit a project. Once submitted, applications cannot be edited.
How long does the nomination process take?
The nomination itself can be completed at your own pace within the open eight-week window. You can save your application in the platform and return to it before final submission.
What information is required for a nomination?
Nominations should include:
Contact details of the nominator and lead nominee
Names, countries, and contact details of all team members
Title of the project or story (in English)
Publication type and outlet(s)
Links to the project or PDFs of published material
Summary of the investigation and its core findings
Summary of the project’s impact (e.g., political, institutional, public, or media effects)
Description of any obstacles encountered during the investigation
Estimated duration of the project
Explanation of why the project deserves recognition
Supporting evidence, such as letters, quotes, or references in other publications
Documentation of any significant criticisms, corrections, or responses by the publishing outlet
Can I submit projects in languages other than English?
Yes. Projects may be published in any language. However, a translation of the core investigation or summary into English must be provided.
How secure is the Good Grants platform?
Good Grants is GDPR-compliant and ISO/IEC 27001 certified. It uses multi-factor authentication, encrypted data, multi-tier backups, and secure server architecture to ensure safe submission and storage of all applications.
How do you ensure the security of my data?
IJ4EU takes the data security of applicants and nominations very seriously. All IJ4EU Impact Award nominations are submitted and stored via the Good Grants platform. Good Grants is a secure platform for submission and storage. It is ISO/IEC 27001 certified and GDPR compliant, and multi-factor authentication, encrypted data, multi-tier backups and a secure multi-server architecture in VPC. Each person making a nomination will be asked to create a personal user account to ensure that the nomination can be submitted securely.
What do winners receive?
Each year, three investigations are selected to receive a cash prize. The winners are recognised for their collaboration, quality, and impact in investigative journalism.
Where can I find more information or ask questions?
For further questions about the IJ4EU Impact Award or other IJ4EU grants supporting cross-border investigations, contact: impact-award@ecpmf.eu