The European Endowment for Democracy (EED) is an independent grant-making organisation headquartered in Brussels, Belgium. Established in 2013 by the European Union and its member states, EED was designed as a flexible funding mechanism to support democratic initiatives, particularly in the EU’s neighbourhood, including Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, and the Middle East and North Africa.

EED operates as an autonomous International Trust Fund and is governed by a board that includes civil society experts and representatives from the EU and European states. Its budget is funded by the European Commission alongside voluntary contributions from 23 European countries. EED’s primary aim is to provide support to civil society organisations, political and civic activists, independent media platforms, youth groups, and even unregistered or informal networks. It specifically targets actors and regions unable to access traditional EU funding due to urgency, risk, or bureaucratic constraints.

EED had funded 247 initiatives as of its recent data. Examples of current supported projects include local independent media platforms in Ukraine and pro-democracy youth groups in Belarus. The organisation is known for its rapid response model, enabling it to act in politically sensitive environments where other funders may not be present.

The EED places an emphasis on local ownership of democratic transitions rather than imposing external models. Gender perspective and inclusion are explicitly mainstreamed in all EED-funded actions. Its capacity to act flexibly and in high-risk or restrictive contexts distinguishes it from traditional EU instruments.