“Youth connected against disinformation” 

In a world where information spreads faster than ever, critical thinking and media literacy are more important than ever. In our new project “Youth connected against disinformation”, we give the voice and power to young people in the fight against disinformation, because we believe in their potential and desire for change.

The project, which we are implementing with the financial support of the British Council for Bulgaria and Romania and in partnership with the Association of European Journalists-Bulgaria, was launched with an ambitious goal: to stimulate youth initiatives and transform young people from passive consumers into active creators of quality content.

 

What’s next?

  • Competition for ideas and support for 12 youth projects (May – June 2025):

Invitation for a competition for youth projects – read here

Invitation for a journalism competition for youth – read here

 

  • Pitching session to help young people present their ideas to an audience (June 2025)

See the materials here

 

  • Selected youth initiatives (July 2025):

We received dozens of inspiring ideas, from which we chose to support financially and with mentorship more than the planned 12. These projects cover a wide range of formats – from events and video series to interactive websites, journalistic and educational materials. Our goal was to provide not only funds, but also mentorship to help young authors turn their ideas into successful and impactful products. We would like to thank the two mentors from the Association of European Journalists – Bulgaria: Katerina Vasileva and Ivan Radev, who will work with the young content creators. Here are the projects that will receive support for implementation:

  • Board game “Offline – no filters, no hate” – a project by Victoria Mileva from Sofia;
  • “Think critically, act logically” – a project by Svetoslav Trifonov and classmates from Dobrich;
  • “Filtered reality” by Tsveta Angelkova and Rada Valevska;
  • “Don’t get caught in the net” – by Megan Krasteva and a team from Fakulteta district, Sofia;
  • “Stereotypes in thinking” – by Yona Asenova and Anelia Gospodinova from Shumen;
  • “Digital footprint billboard” – by Kalina Borisova and Nadya Hubcheva from the city of Smolyan

and the following journalistic studies from the young content creators:

  • Borislava Popova – working title of the material: Hunger for perfection;
  • Katrin Radoslavova – Psychological analysis of people who are able to harass women online;
  • Simona Sakarova – How music and lyrics (filled with sexism and hate) influence the understandings and identity of young people;
  • Cornelia Tomaszewicz – Interviews with roma girls who become victims of streamimg of their personal photos without consent;
  • Borislav Borisov – Video with anonymized interviews with girls, victims of distribution of their personal photos without consent;
  • Krasimira Yosifova – working title of the material: “How much do you give her? Do you think they are real to her?”;
  • Elena Dimitrova – Analysis of personal stories;
  • Dilyana Stoyanova – Online harassment of women;
  • Valeria Pramatarova – working title of the material: To “earn” respect through your appearance;
  • Natali Petrova – falsification of images, creation of fake profiles

 

  • Traveling exhibition (December 2025):

We believe that the results of these efforts should reach the maximum number of people. Therefore, in addition to a final exhibition (March 2026), which will present all the achievements, we will also create a traveling exhibition. It will tour different cities in the country, showing the products and effects of youth projects. In this way, we will spread their messages and clearly show how critical thinking can be applied in practice.

 

  • Scaling of the best ideas (December 2025 – March 2026):

After careful analysis, three of the supported ones will be selected for scaling. This means that we will provide them with additional support to reach an even larger audience and have an even greater impact.

 

  •  + Invitation to participate in an International conference (October 2025)

As a bonus for their hard work, young people participating in the project will receive an invitation to join the International Conference “Digital Citizens”, which will be held in Sofia from 9 to 11 October 2025. This is a chance for them to meet with experts from Europe, exchange experiences and continue to develop in the field of media literacy.

A special guest at the conference will be Prof. Olga Jurash, Professor of Law and Director of the Center for the Protection of Women Online (UK). We will talk to her about legal and policy responses to online violence against women, the harm of online violence against women in politics and online harassment.

The “Youth Connected Against Disinformation” project is living proof that young people are not just the future, but the present in the fight against disinformation. They have the energy, creativity and desire to create a more literate and informed society.