The Puffin Foundation, Ltd. and Type Media Center are now accepting nominations for the 2024 Puffin Prize for Creative Citizenship, a $100,000 award given to an individual or organization that challenges the status quo through courageous, distinctive, and socially responsible work.

Nominations are due by Tuesday, February 18, 2025.

The prize encourages recipients to continue and expand on their work. A strong candidate is someone who has either raised awareness of or significantly influenced major social issues in the past year. We consider candidates from all backgrounds and across various fields. Examples of past nominations we've received have been for individuals and organizations working in the areas of defending and expanding democracy, healthcare access, food justice and food sovereignty, police brutality, voting rights, and more. Candidates must be US citizens.

ABOUT THE PUFFIN PRIZE:
The Puffin Foundation Ltd. and Type Media Center are mutual sponsors of an annual $100,000 award given to an individual who has challenged the status quo through courageous, distinctive, and socially responsible work. The prize is intended to encourage the recipients to continue their work, and inspire others to challenge prevailing orthodoxies.

2023/24's winner, the voter registration group HeadCount, was honored for their commitment to activating young people in civic participation.

Other past winners have included Heather Booth, Desmond Meade, the National Network of Abortion Funds, Colin Kaepernick, Amy Goodman, Bryan Stevenson, the Sunrise Movement, and the Parkland students who founded March for Our Lives.

QUESTIONS?
For more information or if you have any questions, email gala@typemediacenter.org or call 212-822-0263.

The Ridenhour Committee is currently soliciting nominations for the 2025 Ridenhour Book Prize. The deadline for submissions is Friday, May 16th, 2025.

Criteria

The Ridenhour Book Prize is awarded to a work of social significance from the prior publishing year. We are seeking books that defend the public interest, advance or promote social justice, or illuminate a more just vision of society. Books that reveal previously unpublished information are of special interest. To qualify for this year's prize, nominated books must have been published in English within the calendar year of 2024. No particular consideration will be given to the nominated author’s public profile or lack thereof.

Deadline

Nominations must be submitted no later than Friday, May 16, 2025.

Submission

*Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we prefer digital copies of all submissions.*

Please attach a digital copy of the book via this form. If you have technical difficulties and cannot share via this form, please contact ridenhour@typemediacenter.org. 

Or, if necessary, send one (1) print copy and a completed copy of this form to the following address. Nominations must be postmarked no later than December 31, 2020 and submitted to:

Type Media Center

30 Irving Place, 10th Flooor

New York, NY 10003

ATTN: The Ridenhour Prizes

Assistance

For more information, please visit ridenhour.org, or contact 212-822-0263, or ridenhour@typemediacenter.org.

The Ridenhour Prizes is currently soliciting nominations for the 2025 Ridenhour Documentary Film Prize. The deadline for submissions is Friday, May 16th, 2025. 

About

The Ridenhour Documentary Film Prize is given to a documentary film that in the view of the judges best reflects the legacy of Ron Ridenhour — journalist, whistleblower, truth-teller and social activist. The Prize seeks to recognize a documentary that defends the public interest, advances or promotes social justice, or illuminates a more just vision of society. To qualify for this year's prize, nominated films must have been released within the calendar year of 2024. No particular consideration will be given to the nominated film’s public profile or lack thereof.

Criteria

All eligible submissions must meet the following basic criteria:

• Films must be feature-length (defined as 45 minutes or longer).
• Films must be American productions. An American production is: 

1. a film in which US citizens or permanent residents are credited in at least two of the following categories of responsibilities: Director, Writer, or Producer. This can be fulfilled by one person with multiple duties or by separate individuals; 
2. or at least partially financed by a company whose principal office is in the United States.

• Films must be scheduled for a theatrical release. The release can be through a specialty division of a studio, an independent distributor, or via self-distribution, and must run for at least seven consecutive days; or have a major film festival release during the 2025 calendar year (from midnight, January 1 to 11:59 p.m. December 31). The film festivals that we accept submissions from are Berlin, Cannes, Hot Docs, Los Angeles, AFI Docs, Sundance, SXSW, Toronto International, and Tribeca; or be shown on free or pay TV. This refers to broadcast on a US network, “cable" television, or conventional VOD, but shall not include distribution that is exclusively over the Internet.

Deadline

Nominations must be submitted no later than Friday, May 16th, 2025. 

Submission

*We strongly encourage the use of secure screener links for film submissions.* 

Please include a screener link when submitting your online submission. Or, if necessary, we can accept DVD screeners. If sending DVDs, please send a hard copy of the form below with two (2) DVDs (capable of playing on Region 1/NTSC DVD players) of each nominated film to: 

Type Media Center 

30 Irving Place, 10th Floor

New York, NY 10003

ATTN: The Ridenhour Prizes

Assistance

For more information, please visit ridenhour.org, or contact us at 212-822-0263 or ridenhour@typemediacenter.org.

Applications are now open for the 2025 Robert Masur Fellowship in Civil Liberties at Type Media Center. Applications must be submitted by Friday, April 18, 2025 to be eligible.

The competition is open to first-year law students who intend to carry out significant activities during the summer (in between their first and second year) in the areas of civil rights and/or civil liberties. Fellows each receive a $3,000 honorarium. Proposed activities may include a writing or research project, work with a public interest organization in the areas of civil rights or civil liberties, work on a civil rights or civil liberties law case under the supervision of a faculty member or lawyer, or any other work in the areas of civil rights or civil liberties. Remote projects are still considered.
 

Applicants should submit a proposal describing their intended summer project, in no more than three pages double-spaced, along with a resumé, letter of recommendation, evidence of their project's approval, and the name and contact information of the faculty or organizational sponsor. Requirements for the proposal statement are:

Your statement should not exceed three pages, double-spaced. Statements should accomplish the following:

• Describe your proposed project; 
• Discuss the need, challenge, or opportunity that the project will address; 
• Describe your central goals for the project and your expected activities and strategies for achieving them;
• Describe how this project fits into your larger career and/or personal goals; 
• Describe your relationship to the person and/or organization who will supervise this project and how you will communicate during the fellowship.
   

Letters of recommendation should include:

• A statement of how long and in what capacity the recommender has known the applicant; 
• A comment on the student’s proposed plans and their feasibility;
• And commentary on the student’s strengths and weaknesses and likelihood that the student will succeed in the proposed project.

Evidence of the project's approval may include: 

• A brief letter or email to the applicant from the organizational sponsor or mentor.
• A screenshot of a confirmation letter or email to the applicant from the organization, the organizational sponsor, and/or representative.
   

Please fill out the application below. For more information or if you have any questions, email masur@typemediacenter.org or call 212-822-0263.