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Resilient Digital Democracy Lab

HORIZON-CL2  ·  Cluster 2  ·  Culture, Creativity & Inclusive Society

📅 Deadline: 16 Sep 2026 💶 Budget: €3.5 – 4 M 🌍 Both Shores of the Mediterranean

Digital & media literacy as drivers for democratic & civic resilience

EMUNI University
Post-Truth Context

We live in the post-truth era.
Facts are no longer the battlefield.

Post-truth politics reframes public debate around emotion, identity, and tribal loyalty rather than verifiable evidence. Oxford Languages named "post-truth" word of the year already in 2016 — but the phenomenon has since accelerated dramatically via social media algorithms, generative AI, and state-sponsored FIMI operations. Mediterranean coastal communities — sitting at the crossroads of migration routes and EU-Neighbourhood geopolitics — are among the most exposed regions in the world.

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Epistemic Fracture
60%+ of people across 28 countries believe their leaders deliberately mislead them (UNDP Signals Spotlight, 2024). Shared factual reality is eroding across democratic societies.
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FIMI Infrastructure
EEAS detected 540 FIMI incidents in 2025 using 25+ platforms and 38,000+ inauthentic accounts. France ranked 2nd most targeted EU member state.
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Mediterranean Vulnerability
Both EU and Southern Neighbourhood communities face coordinated disinformation targeting migration narratives and EU External Action credibility.
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The Literacy Gap
No cross-border toolkit jointly addresses EU and Southern Neighbourhood communities. Digital media literacy remains fragmented and non-standardised across the region.
Core Concept

The Digital Resilience Toolkit — Three Modules

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MODULE 1
Disinformation Observatory
NLP + Social Network Analysis engine monitoring FIMI campaigns on migration narratives across the partner countries' digital ecosystem. Real-time alert dashboard for civil society.
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MODULE 2
Geopolitical Literacy Curriculum
SSH-led, co-designed multilingual curriculum (EN/FR/IT/AR) for university students and civic educators. Covers EU External Action, strategic autonomy & information manipulation.
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MODULE 3
Policy Toolkit for Practitioners
Open-access policy recommendations for local administrations, journalists & NGOs. Evidence base drawn from comparative case studies across all partner institutions.
SSH-Centred Research Open Science Data Multilingual Outputs FAIR Data Compliant
Consortium Profile

Seeking Partners on Both Shores of the Mediterranean

We are building a geographically balanced, interdisciplinary consortium of ~7 institutions. If your institution matches one of the profiles below, we welcome your expression of interest.

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EU Northern Shore
Coordinator + 2–3 EU Partners
Expertise in geopolitics, Mediterranean studies, EU External Action, media literacy, or digital governance. Adriatic–Western Med corridor preferred.
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Southern Shore
2–3 North African Partners
Universities from Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt or similar with expertise in Arabic-language media analysis, democratic transition, or civil society engagement.
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Counterinfo & Cybersecurity
1 Specialised Partner
Front-line expertise in hybrid warfare disinformation, cybersecurity or OSINT. Institutions from Turkey, Ukraine or similar with demonstrated experience countering information operations.
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SSH Research Hub
1–2 Partners
Computational social science or NLP capacity for the Disinformation Observatory. Existing Mediterranean or MENA research networks are a strong asset.
Express interest: Use the feedback form on the final slide to describe your institution's profile and potential contribution. Contact: luka.juri@emuni.si  ·  Consortium formation: July 2026
Methodology · 36 Months

5 Work Packages — SSH + STEM Integration

WP1
Foundations & Mapping
SSH-led conceptual framework for post-truth democracy. Comparative FIMI audit across partner countries. Months 1–10.
WP2
Observatory Development
STEM-led NLP pipeline + SNA tooling, multilingual FIMI detection. EU and Eastern partners co-lead the technical stack. Months 6–24.
WP3
Curriculum & Capacity
SSH co-design of Geopolitical Literacy Curriculum. Pilot in partner institutions across all countries. Months 12–30.
WP4
Policy Toolkit & Dissemination
Open-access toolkit + 4 policy briefs for EC & national govts. Multilingual releases. Months 24–36.
WP5
Ethics, Impact & Management
Cross-cutting: gender-responsive design, data ethics, project management & EC reporting. Coordinator leads. Months 1–36.
SSH integration: SSH disciplines lead WP1, WP3, WP5 and co-lead all WPs. Computational methods in WP2 are explicitly framed within SSH research questions on post-truth democracy and EU strategic autonomy — satisfying the evaluators' genuine SSH integration requirement.
Expected Impact

Aligned with DEMOCRACY-10 Expected Outcomes

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Scientific Impact
3+ peer-reviewed publications in top SSH journals. Open dataset of 50,000+ labelled FIMI instances. New methodology for cross-linguistic disinformation detection across partner languages.
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Societal Impact
2,000+ students trained across partner institutions. 500+ civic practitioners equipped with the toolkit. Measurable media literacy benchmark uplift across all partner countries.
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Policy Impact
4 policy briefs for EU Commission & national governments. Direct input to updated EEAS FIMI framework. Recommendations for Mediterranean Neighbourhood policy instruments.
DEMOCRACY-10 Outcome 1 ✓
Improved capacity of citizens and civil society to identify and counter digital disinformation threatening democratic participation.
DEMOCRACY-10 Outcome 2 ✓
Evidence-based policy tools fostering digital media literacy as a driver for democratic and civic resilience across the EU and its Neighbourhood.
Join the Consortium · Share Feedback

Interested in the project?

Fill in any fields relevant to you. Your comments will be compiled into a single formatted email sent to luka.juri@emuni.si

🏛️ Partner Proposal — Describe Your Institution's Profile
💡 Ideas & Concept
🤝 Partnership Interest
📦 Work Packages
💶 Budget & Resources
🌍 Geography & Scope
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