One year ago, on June 10, 2016, in Washington, DC Free Russia Foundation in cooperation with the Henry Jackson Foundation and Movements.org conducted a conference “Ensuring a Future for Democratic Civil Society in Russia” on connecting technologies and activism.
The event gathered over one hundred participants including Russian pro-democracy opposition leaders, civil society representatives, journalists and diaspora activists, and many American and some European experts on Russia. Guests of the event included representatives from the State Department, the Atlantic Council, the Open World, the National Endowment for Democracy, the Center for European Policy Analysis, the Transatlantic Academy, the Center for International Private Enterprise, Freedom House, the National Democratic Institute, the International Republican Institute, Internews, the Hudson Institute, the American Councils, IREX and many others.
During the year Free Russia Foundation conducted a contest focused on how innovative strategies and the uptake of technological developments can be efficiently applied to create pressure on Russian authorities and lay the groundwork for positive changes in Russia and the entire Eurasia region.
The contest for an innovation project for activists was made among a number of high-tech companies located in the Silicon Valley. The award was assistance developing and submitting an application to possible stakeholders and finding partners for the project. FRF and its jury led by Anna Veduta, Global Outreach Director of Meduza, a media expert, selected the Clostra’s «Freedom Tech project» made by the team, which created FireChat. «Freedom Tech project» is dedicated to decentralized content delivery.
Our congratulations to the winner!