LocationsNational Call for Proposals: Investigative Journalism for Responsible Business
February 19, 2026
National Call for Proposals: Agents of Change – Empowering Youth and Media for Responsible Development
A. PROJECT OVERVIEW
The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), adopted in 2011, provide a global framework to prevent and address adverse human rights impacts linked to business activities. As business operations increasingly affect people, communities, and the environment, the relevance of the UNGPs has grown significantly.
Since 2016, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Business and Human Rights (B+HR) in Asia programme has supported governments, businesses, civil society, youth, and media across the region to advance responsible business conduct. Through regional forums, peer learning, and partnerships, the programme has contributed to strengthening accountability, access to remedy, and policy coherence.
The current phase of the programme, Agents of Change: Youth and Media for Responsible Business Practices (AOC), supported by the European Union, focuses on empowering youth and media professionals to act as catalysts for change. Implemented in Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, and Thailand, the project aims to mobilise young people and media to hold businesses and policymakers accountable for human rights and environmental impacts linked to business operations.
In Thailand, UNDP is implementing the Media Fellowship on Sustainable Development, which includes a series of capacity-building trainings on business and human rights and environmental issues. As a continuation of this Fellowship, UNDP Thailand is launching a Low-Value Grants Programme for Media to support the production of in-depth investigative journalism on corporate accountability.
B. BACKGROUND
Thailand’s transition to an upper-middle-income economy has delivered strong economic growth and increased investment, but it has also generated complex challenges related to business and human rights (BHR). These include labour rights violations, environmental pollution, land and resource conflicts, impacts on community rights, and risks faced by human rights and environmental defenders.
The media plays a critical role in exposing these challenges, shaping public discourse, and promoting accountability. Investigative reporting by Thai journalists—particularly on the seafood industry—has previously contributed to significant business reforms and policy responses.
However, journalists increasingly face structural and operational constraints, including shrinking civic space, legal harassment, and Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation (SLAPP). UNDP research indicates that a significant proportion of individuals disclosing public-interest information face threats, violence, or judicial harassment. At the same time, many journalists lack access to specialised knowledge, tools, and resources to investigate complex business, environmental, and transboundary investment issues.
Since 2024, the Media Fellowship on Sustainable Development has served as a platform for strengthening journalists’ capacities and networks. With support from the European Union under the AOC project, UNDP has trained more than 65 journalists through targeted modules on Investigative Journalism for Responsible Business Practices, covering labour rights, community and environmental rights, and transboundary investment and multinational enterprises.
Building on these efforts, UNDP Thailand will award up to three (3) Low-Value Grants with maximum of 300,000 Thai baht per grant to support investigative media productions that highlight corporate accountability for human rights and environmental impacts in Thailand.
C. PURPOSE OF THE GRANT PROGRAMME
The purpose of the Low-Value Grants Programme is to support media organisations and media-focused civil society organisations to produce high-quality, in-depth investigative journalism that strengthens public understanding of business and human rights and environmental accountability in Thailand.
Specifically, the grant programme aims to:
- Support investigative reporting that exposes, analyses, and contextualizes corporate-related human rights and environmental impacts, holding businesses accountable on issues including but not limited to labour rights, climate change, pollution, land use, and community rights;
- Enhance journalists’ application of business and human rights frameworks, including the UNGPs, in their reporting;
- Promote gender-responsive and inclusive reporting that reflects differentiated impacts on women, men, and gender-diverse groups;
- Encourage innovative storytelling approaches that increase public awareness and engagement, as well as support responsive action to stop harmful business practices;
- Contribute to a more enabling environment for accountability, access to remedy, and responsible business conduct.
D. SCOPE OF THE GRANTS PROGRAMME
Selected grantees will be expected to:
- Produce a series of investigative stories, comprising at least three (3) separate media products, published on the official channels of recognized news agencies or media outlets (including their websites, broadcast platforms, or verified institutional social media accounts), and excluding personal social media accounts, personal blogs, or individual creator channels.
Each media product must independently meet the minimum format requirements (e.g., a 1,500-word article with photography, or a video of at least 15 minutes) and focus on corporate accountability for human rights and environmental impacts in Thailand.
- Ensure that stories are clearly linked to Business and Human Rights (BHR) themes, such as but not limited to:
- Labour rights
- Community and environmental rights
- Human rights and environmental defenders
- Transboundary investment and multinational enterprises
- Apply gender-responsive reporting, including:
- Analysing differentiated impacts on women, men, and gender-diverse groups;
- Ensuring diverse sources, voices, and relevant stakeholders to reflect a comprehensive and balanced range of perspectives in the story;
- Avoiding harmful stereotypes and ensuring ethical representation.
- Employ innovative storytelling approaches, such as:
- Long-form investigative articles or “scrollytelling”;
- Data-driven or data-supported journalism;
- Interactive data-visualisation or infographics;
- Visual storytelling, including short documentaries or video series.
Applicants will be expected to:
- Submit a detailed proposal and action plan for review and approval by UNDP prior to production, including:
- Proposed topics and angles;
- Preliminary sources and stakeholders;
- Ethical considerations and source protection measures.
- Clear action plan outlining investigative story planning, target audiences, publication channels, and dissemination channels and strategies to maximize public reach and impact.
- Risk assessment and mitigation plan identifying potential legal, political, or safety risks (including SLAPP), and propose mitigation strategies.
Format
Digital media outputs such as online investigative articles, videos, or short documentaries.
Out of Scope: Production of social media–specific content as a standalone output is not eligible.
(Note: Grantees may disseminate approved, consulted outputs via social media platforms as part of their outreach strategy.)
E. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Be a non-governmental or independent media-focused civil society organisation registered in Thailand and operational for at least three (3) years;
- Demonstrate a mandate and track record in promoting independent, ethical, and quality journalism;
- Unregistered media collectives or informal groups may apply in partnership with an eligible registered organisation, which will act as the lead applicant and grant recipient;
- Demonstrate experience in producing high-quality, in-depth journalism on environmental, social, or human rights issues;
- Provide at least three (3) samples of relevant work produced within the past three years;
- Propose activities that focus on corporate accountability for human rights and environmental impacts, relevant to local or regional contexts;
- Promote constructive, evidence-based, and public-interest–oriented approaches to advocacy and accountability;
- Include a storyboard, methodology, and risk assessment as part of the proposal.
F. PROCEDURES OF GRANT PROPOSAL SUBMISSION
Under the AOC Small Grant for Media Organisations programme, UNDP will award up to three (3) grants, each with a maximum value of 300,000 THB, for a total contribution of approximately THB 900,000, for up to 7.5 months from 30 April – 15 December 2026.
Those wishing to apply for grant under this call for proposal should submit the following:
- Copy of the organisation’s registration certificate
- CVs of the proposed project team, indicating roles and responsibilities
- Sample of previous work (minimum of three)
- Fully completed project proposal using the template provided: Annex 1: Proposal Template – AOC Media Small Grant Application
Financial Conditions:
- Project staff salary costs must not exceed 25% (or 75,000 THB) of the total budget;
- Co-funding and in-kind contributions are strongly encouraged;
- Eligible costs include personnel, travel, stationery, printing, translation, digital production, and other costs directly related to project implementation;
- Ineligible costs include infrastructure improvement, equipment purchase, maintenance, utilities, overheads, and similar expenditures.
G. HOW TO APPLY
Please send all grant documents per request above electronically in one file (pdf format) signed and scanned to the following email: LowValueGrants.th@undp.org and CC tarinee.suravoranon@undp.org and porawin.piamsakkamon@undp.org with the subject “Agents of Change 2026 Media Small Grant Application” not later than 20 March 2026, 23:59 hrs Bangkok, Thailand.
If additional clarifications required, questions can be sent to the same email address indicated above. Answers to questions will be provided within two working days.
H. PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION TIMEFRAME
Implementation period for approved projects shall not exceed six (6) months, counted from the date of the contract signature to the date when all relevant activities have been successfully completed.
I. SELECTION PROCESS
Decisions on awarding grants are made by a Grant Selection Board (GSB). The Board will be comprised of the representatives of relevant UNDP representatives and other experts engaged for this process.
All GSB decisions on funding projects will be taken no later than three weeks after the closing date for applications. UNDP will inform successful applicants in writing no later than two weeks after the date of the GSB decision.
Applications will be disqualified and will not be further considered, if they:
- Do not comply with priorities or instructions provided in this announcement;
- Contradict to principles of human rights based-approach, non-discrimination and gender equality.
J. SELECTION CRITERIA AND SCORING
The selection criteria will involve the following elements:
| Selection Criteria | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Experience and capacity of the applicant | Max. 25 points |
| 2 | Relevance of the proposal to the theme of the grant | Max. 20 points |
| 3 | Innovation in the proposed storytelling approach | Max. 20 points |
| 4 | Feasibility of project implementation | Max. 15 points |
| 5 | The project uses the principles of human rights-based approach and takes consideration of the principles of non-discrimination, gender equality and inclusion of marginalized and vulnerable groups | Max. 20 points |
| TOTAL | 100 Points | |
IMPORTANT: You will be notified by email no later than three working days after we have successfully received your application. If you do not hear from us within this timeframe, please contact us during the next two days and request confirmation of receipt of email. Otherwise, UNDP will not be responsible for any potential problems in terms of considering the application.
K. ADDITIONAL NOTES
All proposed story concepts, storyboards, and final media outputs produced under this grant programme shall be subject to prior review and approval by the UNDP project team before publication or public dissemination. This review process is intended to ensure alignment with the objectives of the grant, adherence to ethical and safety standards, and compliance with UNDP policies and donor requirements.
UNDP recognizes and respects the importance of editorial integrity and journalistic independence. However, applicants should note that the primary purpose of this grant programme is to raise public awareness and understanding of the interlinkages between business practices, human rights, and environmental impacts (BHR+E). As such, funded outputs must remain within the agreed thematic scope and objectives of the programme. Reporting that falls outside the approved scope or deviates significantly from the agreed proposal may not be eligible for support under this grant.
UNDP reserves the right to guide, refine, or adjust proposed topics, where necessary, based on stakeholder consultations, contextual analysis, and risk assessments, including political, legal, safety, and reputational considerations. This approach is intended to ensure that supported media outputs are context-sensitive, responsible, and do not expose journalists, communities, or partners to undue risk, while remaining relevant to country-specific circumstances.
Final decisions regarding topic suitability, risk mitigation measures, and publication clearance shall rest with UNDP, in close consultation with the selected grantees, to ensure a collaborative and transparent process throughout the implementation of the grant.
Payment terms and conditions:
| Deliverables/ Outputs | Percentage of Total Price (Weight for payment) | Target timeline and indicative due dates |
|---|---|---|
| Submission and UNDP approval of a detailed proposal and action plan, including story angles, research questions, stakeholder mapping, methodology, risk assessment and mitigation measures, production plan, and dissemination plan for the proposed investigative stories. | 50% | Two weeks after signing contract |
| Completion and submission of at least three (3) final investigative media outputs on business and human rights and/or environmental and community rights issues, together with proof of publication or dissemination and a short final narrative report summarizing key findings, process, challenges, and lessons learned. | 50% | 1 November 2026 |
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