Together, we can rise from the ashes of 2025 

Foreword

Last year was tough on democracy defenders – including ARTICLE 19.

It’s been a perfect storm: spiralling attacks, plummeting funding.

Foreign-aid funding fell by almost a quarter: the largest annual contraction on record. Nearly all the top 10 donors cut their contributions – with the notable exceptions of Sweden and Italy, who increased their budgets.

The US cuts were particularly devastating for freedom of expression and its defenders – including ARTICLE 19 – as our research, Targeted, revealed.

These cuts did not occur in a vacuum.

They took place against a backdrop of shrinking freedom of expression worldwide.

• Our Global Expression Report revealed that more than 70% of us have less freedom of expression than we had a decade ago.
• Democracy dropped to levels last seen in 1978.
• Nearly 3 in 4 people now live in autocracies.

Meanwhile, armed conflict is at a record high; governments are abandoning international cooperation in favour of national security; and a handful of companies are controlling what we see, say, and share online – and celebrating soaring profits as our rights plummet.

We are at a global inflection point – and democracy itself hangs in the balance.

Now more than ever, we need journalists, activists, and civil society.

We need those who dedicate their lives to defending our freedoms, challenging corruption, and holding power to account.

Yet our bravest defenders – especially the most marginalised – are being silenced by restrictive laws, surveillance, and censorship.

Now more than ever, we need the institutions created to protect our rights.

We need a shared vision. We need to cooperate in pursuit of it. And we need protection from attempts to destroy our rights.

Yet in the face of plummeting public trust, democratic institutions are crumbling – and corruption and disinformation are flooding the vacuum.

Now more than ever, we need freedom of expression: the lifeblood of democracy. 

Freedom of expression – the rights to speak and to know – enables us to speak out against rollbacks on our rights, hold power in check, and demand a better future. It’s a foundational right: we need it to protect all our rights.

Yet free expression is at its weakest in 60 years. What’s more, autocrats are redefining ‘free speech’ and weaponising it to divide us – at a time when we urgently need to stand united.

Now more than ever, we need a global movement to defend free expression – and democracy itself.

We need courage, creativity, and community. We need to relegate ‘business as usual’ to the dustbin of history. And we need to rise from the ashes of 2025 – together.

That’s where ARTICLE 19 comes in.

ARTICLE 19 is a natural leader of this movement: since 1987, we have been at the forefront of the fight for free expression.

• We have spent 40 years crafting a global ecosystem of resistance.

• Our 8 hubs worldwide, from Tunis to Taipei, are deeply embedded in the communities they serve.

• Our international office, advocates, and experts support them to create change.

Our unique ecosystem enables ARTICLE 19 to deliver global impact rooted in local needs.

Impact despite the odds

In 2025, ARTICLE 19 realigned and refocused on a new strategy, building on The Power of Our Voices and setting out our response to today's unprecedented challenges to freedom of expression.

And despite the hurdles, our teams worldwide delivered genuine impact for the communities we serve worldwide.

Thanks to our work in 2025:

• 16 laws, resolutions, and policies in line with our positions were adopted
• Over 2,300 journalists, activists, and human rights defenders were better equipped to defend expression for all
• Readership of our last Impact Report (published in 2025) grew by 730% compared to 2 years earlier.

This final point shows that, in these challenging times, people are hungry for success stories. We hope this year’s Impact Report provides further inspiration to everyone on the freedom of expression frontlines.

Because the wins showcased here are not only a testament to the courage, tenacity, and resilience of ARTICLE 19’s teams worldwide.

They are proof that civil society is our best weapon against rising authoritarianism, democratic backsliding, and populist nationalism.

It’s time to heal, unite, and rise.

We have the experience, passion, and grit to emerge from the challenges of 2025 stronger, more sustainable, and better supported to clear the immense hurdles we all face.

But we can’t do it without you.

Now more than ever, we need your support.

On behalf of all those who work tirelessly to defend our freedoms: thank you.

Warm wishes,

Bob Latham

(Chair of the International Board)

 

Invest in expression today

Targeted

How US foreign aid cuts threaten free expression and its defenders worldwide

Between January and April 2025, the government of the US implemented massive and immediate cuts to foreign aid spending, which funds work to defend freedom of expression and other human rights worldwide.

The effect on civil society was immediate and immense.

Mass uncertainty.

Widespread job losses.

The shuttering of critical programmes, organisations, and initiatives – many built up over decades. 

Against this backdrop, it was clear that freedom of expression defenders had to plan for a future that looked wildly different to the one we imagined as recently as 2024.

But when ‘everything all at once’ has been cut (as one laid-off USAID employee told ARTICLE 19), what – and who – should civil society and donors prioritise?

How do we make an impact, when demand is soaring and resources are plummeting?

And how do we rebuild for an uncertain future?

To even begin to answer these questions, we first need to make a clear-eyed assessment of the damage done. In other words: we need accurate information.

That’s why, between June and December 2025, ARTICLE 19 set out to examine how the US cuts were affecting vital work to defend freedom of expression worldwide.

With the generous support of the Fritt Ord Foundation, we undertook a quantitative analysis to establish what and how much was cut, interviewed 64 civil society representatives worldwide, and reviewed hundreds of secondary sources.

Our report, Targeted, set out what we found and offered recommendations for how civil society and donors can rebuild, reconfigure, and reinvent in the wake of this unprecedented attack on freedom of expression.