EU Values Foresight
Think Tank
Roundtable event: Czech Civil Society in Crisis Preparedness: Linking Bottom-Up Foresight with EU Priorities
7 November 2025
How are CSOs in Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia funded, and how does this impact their ability to uphold EU democratic values?
On 31 July at Res Publica – Visegrad Insight we held a Visegrad Insight Breakfast discussion dedicated to the shrinking space for civil society organisations in Central Europe. The conversation focused on the operational and funding challenges these organisations face and examined the real-life consequences for democracy and democratic resilience in the region.
The discussion, hosted by Magda Jakubowska, Vice President of Res Publica Foundation – Visegrad Insight, featured Eto Buziashvili, a Research Associate at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, who shared her experience and tools used in Georgia and Moldova by authoritarian-leaning actors to gain grounds for their political gains.
We explored the funding landscape for CSOs in Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia,discussing how existing support mechanisms can strengthen or threaten their ability to uphold the core democratic values of the European Union.
Hosting a number of CSOs representative and diplomats who work on democracy-related issues in the whole CEE, we had lively exchanged on the broader implications of restricting legal frameworks and funding for civil society – drawing lessons from Georgia’s experience for Central and Eastern Europe and beyond and brainstorming ideas for recommendations, based on solutions from other countries.
The discussion was inspired by Visegrad Insight’s latest policy brief exploring new strategies to reinforce civic space in Central Europe – from embedding democratic safeguards in EU funding to providing emergency and core support for CSOs in vulnerable member states, and avoiding further deterioration of the third sector.
See the photos below:
