Kim Wall Memorial Fund – Inaugural Grant Open
“The undercurrents of rebellion.” That’s how Swedish journalist Kim Wall described her unique approach to reporting on subcultures, broadly defined, around the globe. The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF), in partnership with Kim’s family and friends, seek to make sure the kinds of stories Kim loved continue to be told, through the creation of the Kim Wall Memorial Fund. Whether reporting about Cuba’s underground market for digital content and culture, how the politics of opportunity played out inside Kampala’s emerging Chinatown, or the extent to which female Tamil Tiger combatants in Sri Lanka were failed by the promises of a feminist utopia, Kim introduced us to incredibly interesting people others overlooked. The Memorial Fund will help other women with Kim’s adventurous spirit chase down these important, underreported stories.
Kim reported from all over the world in her short but accomplished career as an international correspondent. Her reporting appeared in publications including Harper’s, The New York Times, Foreign Policy, The Atlantic, TIME, Slate, Vice and Guardian. Kim was an IWMF fellow and grantee, and received support from the organization in 2016 to report from Uganda and Sri Lanka.
Beginning this year, one $5,000 reporting grant will be awarded annually to a female journalist whose reporting carries forward Kim’s legacy.
“We can never get Kim back, but we can see to it that her spirit and will live on, and inspire other young journalists to go out in the world and find the stories,” Ingrid and Joachim Wall, Kim’s parents, said. “More than ever, we need brave female journalists who give voice to the people that normally never hit the front pages.”
“Kim Wall was a dedicated journalist, and loved by our network of staff and journalists who worked closely with her,” said the IWMF’s executive director Elisa Lees Muñoz. “She was dogged in her pursuit of important and sometimes quirky stories. She was adored by those who knew her.”
The Kim Wall Memorial Fund was established by Kim’s parents, her brother Tom Wall, her partner Ole Stobbe, and her friends Mansi Choksi, May Jeong, Adam Perez and Dhiya Kuriakose. Donations can be made here.
This fund was developed in the spirit that Kim would have wanted more women to be out in the world, brushing up against life. Through this grant, the IWMF seeks to help bend the world toward Kim’s vision.
Since 1990, the IWMF has worked to unleash the potential of women journalists as champions of press freedom to transform the global news media. We seek to ensure that women journalists worldwide are fully supported, protected, recognized and rewarded for their vital contributions at all levels of the news media.
The Kim Wall Memorial Fund will distribute one $5,000 grant once a year, and the first award will be made in mid-March 2018. Winners will be paired with a mentor to assist them in their reporting.
- Grants will be $5,000 USD.
- Grants will be awarded to cover reporting-related costs including travel (flights, ground transportation, drivers), logistics, visa fees, and payment for fixers/translators.
- All applications must be filled out online via the IWMF’s online application system.
The IWMF will accept applications once-yearly. Please keep this is mind when creating proposed project timelines. Due to the large influx of applications, the IWMF cannot consider time-sensitive proposals. Please refer to the application closing date for each application cycle, and expect grants to be disseminated 6 – 10 weeks following the application close. Applicants may apply for concurrently for Reporting Grants for Women’s Stories and the Howard G. Buffett Fund for Women Journalists.