The online and social media space has transformed the information landscape over the last decade. Platforms such as Facebook and Twitter have become a hub for citizen engagement, creating opportunities for active citizens to collaborate in pursuing change. Despite this, the online space is also being used to disrupt the integrity of information, and undertake cybersecurity attacks that add to existing tensions across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

NDI’S Kosovo podcast, which encompasses a range of topics including but not limited to digital democracy, the impact of misogyny and sexism as a weapon against women in politics, the prevalence of foreign influences, and the role of journalists in the information war, released its first season in June of 2022. NDI’s Kosovo team works to reinforce and safeguard democracy in the region by working against misleading information and examining how it impacts the international sphere.

This story is part of a series highlighting the work done through the Equal Rights in Action (ERA) Fund. Through the ERA Fund, NDI supports local activist organizations all over the world, strengthening democracy and defending the human rights of marginalized communities. LGBTQI+ communities, people with disabilities (PWD) and other marginalized communities face discrimination and unfair treatment at the individual and systemic levels, operating with limited resources and overcoming tumultuous circumstances.

On February 24, 2022, the world watched as Russia launched its full-scale invasion, with the aim of toppling Ukraine’s government and erasing from the map a democratic nation whose very existence Vladimir Putin has denied. More than a year later, Ukraine remains steadfast in the face of unrelenting violence and terror.