Grant Allocation Committee Terms of Reference

1. Purpose

The Grant Allocation Committee (hereinafter referred to as GAC) is an ad hoc council set up by the Foundation for Democracy and Liberal Values, a nonprofit US-based 501(c)(3) organization (hereinafter referred to as FDLV), for the Grant Program “Support of Media Content Production”(hereinafter referred to as Grant Program). The GAC is responsible for making decisions on the distribution of grants following the grant policy and approved budget, and evaluating the Grant Program’s performance.

2. Mandate

The mandate of the GAC is to make final decisions on grant allocation to media organizations and individuals who submitted their project proposals and other required documentation for the Grant Program, as well as evaluate the performance of the Grant Program. The responsibilities of the GAC include, but are not limited to: - Evaluate project proposals and rank them in the order of priority.

- Evaluate the Grant Program’s performance based on the approved criteria.
- Attend regular GAC meetings and participate in the decision-making process and discussions.
- Provide recommendations to the FDLV on any updates or changes to the Grant Policy or other key documents.

3. Membership composition

The GAC shall consist of seven members who don’t intend to apply for this grant program. The GAC includes:

- The representative of the Donor supporting the Program and the Grants Director of the FDLV.
- Five external members

4. Membership Recruitment

The FDLV conducts membership recruitment by contacting potential candidates with the necessary competencies and reputation in the field. The criteria for qualifying for an external grant committee member include at least one of the following:

- Good knowledge of the Russian-speaking media space or the media space in similar repressive environments and the functioning of the exiled media.
- Experience in implementing IT solutions or innovations in the media space or other sectors and ability to evaluate its effectiveness or/and commercial viability.
- Academic experience and scholarly work in media studies, especially in the fields of digital media, information security and surveillance, digital authoritarianism, media ethics and fact-checking, propaganda, disinformation and misinformation, media management and functioning of social media platforms.

Members of the GAC shall demonstrate integrity and commitment to the Grant Program’s cause. After consulting with the Donor, the Grants Director shall get the approval of the Board of Directors of the FDLV for the final list of external members of the GAC. THE FDLV shall publish the names of the GAC members on the official website. If a GAC member asks the FDLV not to mention his/her name, the FDLV keeps the information confidential.

5. Term

The GAC appointments shall follow the maximum of a two-year term. If the Grant Program is completed within a shorter period of time, the GAC serves until the end of the Grant Program. In the case of a vacancy for any cause, the Grants Director shall fill the vacancy after consultations with the Donor.

6. Resignation

A member of the GAC shall cease to be a member of the GAC upon submission of a letter of resignation to the FDLV. If a member skips the GAC meeting without prior notification or breaks the conflict of interest provisions, the FDLV’s President may decide to end the contract.

7. Role of the GAC Members

- Ensure that the mandate of the GAC is fulfilled.
- Represent the field of expertise and commitment to the cause of the Grant Program.
- Evaluate the performance of the Grant Program and offer recommendations.

8. Meetings

- The FDLV shall convene to make grant decisions according to the agreed work plan and evaluate the Grant Program’s performance. If most members see a need to convene meetings to discuss other issues, the FDLV shall organize them.
- The Grants Director shall lead the meetings.
- Meetings are closed and anything that is discussed shall be kept confidential.
- All GAC members shall be present at the meetings where grant allocation decisions are made and the performance of the Grant Program is discussed.

9. Conflict of interest

Members of the GAC shall not be personally interested in the outcomes of the grant decisions and shall disclose past and present professional or personal affiliations with applicants. As a general rule, members who have any present affiliations with any individual applicant shall withdraw from discussions and decision-making processes regarding the application where he/she may have a personal interest. The GAC may allow a member who has present affiliations with an applicant to participate in discussions if the majority of the members vote for it.

10. Procedures

- GAC members shall have access to all registered incoming applications, summaries of submitted applications, and expert evaluations of some applications no later than two weeks before the scheduled GAC meeting.
-Each member is required to rank the applications from most to least preferable, keeping in mind the size of the grant pool to be distributed.
- Members of the GAC shall refrain from exchanging their rankings with each other before the meeting but shall make them available to the grant manager two days before the meeting.
- The GAC discusses applications, starting with those that are at the top of each committee member’s list.
- The majority rule applies when selecting winning applications. If votes are equally distributed, the Grants Director casts the deciding vote.

11. Confidential information and non-disclosure

GAC members shall sign a non-disclosure agreement with the FDLV and keep all information obtained as part of their duty confidential. In reviewing and evaluating applications, GAC members shall follow the security protocol distributed by the FDLV.

12. Remuneration

The FDLV offers remuneration to GAC members, but members can choose to serve without remuneration. The amount of remuneration and other payment-related conditions are agreed upon individually between the FDLV and a member.

13. Terms of Reference

Any responsibilities not clearly defined within these Terms of Reference shall be the responsibility of the FDLV. The FDLV can make amendments to these Terms of Reference at its discretion at any time. It is required to notify GAC members of any changes in a reasonable amount of time. Upon fulfilling the mandate of the GAC, the FDLV dissolves the GAC.