Over 40 independent newsrooms from across Europe will soon gather to share experiences, lessons learned, and ideas on how design thinking and innovation can transform media production.

This isn’t another sit-and-listen conference. It’s a collaborative space. At the heart of the summit is the “all teach, all learn” principle.

The newsrooms will be presenting their projects and prototypes developed through the PluPro initiative during which they received microgrants to test new products and services.

They will share what worked – and what didn’t – in various formats.

European independent media face tough challenges – from financial sustainability to getting audiences’ attention and rebuilding trust. This summit is designed for independent newsrooms working on new products and experimenting with ways to stay relevant and boost their resilience.

This summit will be more than just an event – you can expect a gold mine of innovative ideas and insights about how to create journalism that is meaningful, user-driven, and future-ready.

This will be a place to:

• Learn from peers who used design thinking to research, prototype, and test new approaches;
• Explore how innovation can strengthen independent journalism across Europe;
• Experience best practices applying design thinking for resilience and sustainability;
• Connect with an informed community of journalists from over 40 media outlets; and
• Collaborate to strengthen the European independent media community.

Together, we’ll build a space where independent media learn from each other, inspire one another, and grow stronger for the challenges ahead.

The summit is the culmination of a microgrant and capacity-building program supporting over 50 local independent media outlets across Europe within the PluPro Project.  

Through capacity-building, design-learning innovation, and a shared repository of case studies, the program fosters a culture of local media innovation. 

PluPro is co-funded by the European Commission (Creative Europe), Limelight Foundation, and Vereniging Veronica, and jointly managed by Journalismfund Europe (Belgium) and Transitions (Czech Republic).

Design thinking is a way of solving problems by focusing on the real needs and experiences of people. It begins with understanding users through research and empathy, then moves through stages of brainstorming, prototyping, and testing.

This iterative, creative process can be used not only to develop new products but also to design services, workflows, and strategies. The goal is always the same: to create practical, effective, and user-friendly solutions that genuinely address human needs.

Design Thinking helps newsrooms stay relevant and connected to their audiences. Instead of deciding for the audience, journalists learn from the audience – through empathy, research, and rapid testing of ideas.

By using design-thinking methods, media outlets can:

• Discover real audience needs and create journalism that addresses them;
• Design new storytelling formats, services, or platforms that resonate with diverse communities;
• Innovate with less risk by prototyping and iterating before full-scale launches;
• Build trust and stronger relationships by involving the public in shaping the news experience; and
• Identify sustainable business models that support financial stability and editorial independence.

This approach enables media outlets to move beyond simply delivering information and toward meaningful, user-driven journalism that strengthens democracy and civic engagement.

The summit will highlight the diverse, innovative projects developed by participating newsrooms during the PluPro Project. Many of these initiatives fall into common areas, including:

• launching/redesigning an existing website or creating a new website section;
• developing video content;
• launching/redesigning a newsletter;
• monetizing a media product;
• developing and promoting a podcast;
• developing audience research tools and mechanisms; and
• using AI tools.
  
  

Through peer learning and open dialogue, participants will share their experiences with these projects to inspire new ideas and foster resilience in independent media.

Founded in 1999, Transitions is a non-profit magazine and journalism training organization based in Prague. Our mission is to help build trust in independent, professional journalism and to foster a critically minded, informed, and engaged public, with a special focus on the post-communist countries of Europe and the former Soviet Union.

We do this through the publication of Transitions – an online, English-language magazine, which provides in-depth analysis and opinion on this region – as well as journalism training and news literacy programs. 

• Share and learn best practices applying design thinking for resilience and sustainability
• Connect with an informed community of journalists from 50+ outlets
• Collaborate to strengthen the European independent media community

Together, we’ll build a space where independent media learn from each other, inspire one another, and grow stronger for the challenges ahead.