On Wednesday, 16 September 2026, the launch event of the €14.3 million EEA Civil Society Fund Greece was held with great success at the Athens Conservatoire. Funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, the Fund aims to provide substantial support to the work of civil society organizations. The Fund Operator is the Bodossaki Foundation, in consortium with SolidarityNow.

As part of the event, Professor Linos-Alexandros Sicilianos, President of the Marangopoulos Foundation for Human Rights, participated as a speaker in the main discussion on “Information Integrity and Human Rights”, alongside Ambassador Jan Braathu, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media.

Professor Sicilianos highlighted the crucial role of free and reliable information in strengthening democratic dialogue and ensuring the effective protection of human rights, as well as the importance of a strong and active civil society for the effective functioning of democracy and the promotion of the rule of law. He also focused on key issues relating to the protection of human rights, social justice and anti-discrimination, which feature among the programme’s thematic priorities, including combating gender-based violence and trafficking in human beings, protecting unaccompanied minors, promoting the integration of refugees into Greek society, and empowering Roma women and girls and facilitating their access to education.

At a time when civic space is shrinking, disinformation is intensifying and citizens’ trust in democratic institutions is being put to the test, strengthening civil society and promoting democracy are more necessary than ever.