What Courage Foundation does

Courage Foundation is an international nonprofit organization founded in August 2013 (originally as The Journalistic Source Protection Defence Fund) and officially launched in Berlin on June 11, 2014. It raises donations to fund the legal defense of whistleblowers and journalists facing serious prosecution or persecution, and campaigns for broader protection of press freedom and the public's right to know. The organization has supported high-profile beneficiaries including Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, Daniel Hale, Richard Medhurst, and Lauri Love, with the 2024 release of Assange after 1,901 days in Belmarsh representing its most celebrated outcome. Governance is provided by a Board of Trustees (Julian Assange, Gavin MacFadyen, Barbora Bukovská) and an Advisory Board including Daniel Ellsberg, Thomas Drake, Ray McGovern, Annie Machon, Mairead Maguire, John Perry Barlow, and Eben Moglen, with operational leadership from Executive Director Nathan Fuller and Acting Director Sarah Harrison.

The organization's revenue model is entirely donation-based, accepting contributions via credit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency, and check. There are no disclosed financial figures, institutional investors, or funding rounds. Its distribution footprint spans the US, UK, Australia, Germany, Austria, Russia, and France, supported by grassroots support groups in cities including NYC, LA, Denver, Milwaukee, Boston, Washington DC, and Chicago, plus activations across Europe and Latin America.

Courage Foundation's core products are digital platforms rather than software: the primary couragefound.org website, the dedicated assangedefense.org and dontextraditeassange.com campaign sites, the new CourageInternational.org international hub, and the weekly 'This Week in Press Freedom' blog/newsletter. There is no proprietary technology stack, no mobile app, no API, and no AI/ML capability; the organization relies on standard web publishing, social media (Facebook, X/Twitter), email, and coalition-based PR. Strategic distribution flows through partnerships with press freedom organizations including Defending Rights & Dissent, Roots Action, the Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders, Freedom of the Press Foundation, and the Student Press Law Center, with recent joint actions focused on Gaza journalist access, Columbia University investigations, the federal PRESS Act, and arms embargo advocacy.

Name

Courage Foundation

Legal name

Courage Foundation

Website

https://couragefound.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Courage Foundation is an international nonprofit that raises donations to fund legal defense and public campaigns for whistleblowers and journalists facing serious prosecution, including high-profile beneficiaries such as Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, and Daniel Hale.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Press Freedom Nonprofit Advocacy

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Justice & Human Rights Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB)

Keywords

• Whistleblower legal defense
• Press freedom advocacy
• Journalist protection funds
• Nonprofit legal fundraising
• Espionage Act defense

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The organization raises funds through donations via credit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency, or check to support the legal defense of whistleblowers and journalists.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Courage Foundation is a nonprofit that raises funds for the legal defense of whistleblowers and journalists who risk life or liberty for significant contributions to the historical record. It accepts donations via credit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency, or check, and runs public advocacy campaigns and coalition efforts in support of press freedom and individual beneficiaries such as Julian Assange and Edward Snowden.

Product overview

Courage Foundation is a non-profit advocacy organization that operates primarily through its digital platforms and campaigns rather than traditional software products. Its core offerings include the main couragefound.org website for campaign coordination and fundraising, the dedicated assangedefense.org site for Julian Assange's defense efforts, the dontextraditeassange.com campaign platform, the weekly Press Freedom Blog (This Week in Press Freedom) covering global press freedom violations, and the CourageInternational.org international site. The organization does not offer a traditional SaaS platform with modules but rather functions as a coalition-building and advocacy organization that uses its web presence to coordinate legal defense fundraising, publish press freedom news, and mobilize public action for whistleblowers facing prosecution.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Courage Foundation Website (couragefound.org) The primary website for Courage Foundation, serving as the central hub for advocacy campaigns, legal defense fundraising, press freedom news, and take-action initiatives for whistleblowers and journalists facing prosecution. Accepts donations via credit card, bank transfer, cryptocurrency, or check.
• Courage International Site (CourageInternational.org) An international version of the Courage Foundation website providing global coverage of the organization's campaigns and initiatives for whistleblowers and journalists.
• Press Freedom Blog (This Week in Press Freedom) A weekly newsletter and blog series covering press freedom news, attacks on journalists, and updates on the right to know, featuring regular roundups of press freedom violations globally.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully secured release of Julian Assange after 12 years of detention
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Student Press Law CentercoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 May 2025Joined coalition with Student Press Law Center and 18 other journalism and free speech groups to call on Columbia University to cease investigations against student journalists.
• Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)majorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 May 2025Coalition partner on press freedom advocacy. Participated in joint letter with 200+ press freedom organizations calling for urgent access to Gaza for journalists.
• Reporters Without Borders (RSF)majorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Coalition partner on World Press Freedom Day and ongoing advocacy. Led coalition with CPJ calling for independent access to Gaza for journalists.
• Freedom of the Press FoundationcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Long-standing coalition partner. Co-signed letters opposing Kash Patel FBI nomination and advocating for PRESS Act. Joint advocacy on journalist protection.
• Roots ActioncoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 August 2024Co-organized coalition of journalists and press freedom advocates. Partnered on campaign to demand US arms embargo on Israel amid killing of Palestinian journalists.
• Centre for Investigative JournalismminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2014Gavin MacFadyen, Director of the Centre for Investigative Journalism, serves as Courage Trustee and supported the organization's launch.
• Defending Rights & DissentcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-organized coalition for journalist letter to US Secretary of State Blinken demanding arms embargo on Israel. Long-standing partner in press freedom campaigns including Julian Assange defense and whistleblower protection efforts.
• WikiLeakscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRelated organization through Julian Assange. Courage has campaigned for WikiLeaks publisher since inception, organizing and leading the Assange Defense campaign.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Freedom of the Press Foundation: US-based nonprofit that funds legal defense for journalists and whistleblowers, secures secure communications tools for sources, and advocates for press freedom. Closest direct peer to Courage — long-standing coalition partner on PRESS Act advocacy and source-protection campaigns.
• Reporters Without Borders (RSF): Paris-based international NGO defending press freedom worldwide, publishing annual press freedom indices, and coordinating advocacy on journalist safety. Coalition partner with Courage on Gaza journalist access and World Press Freedom Day activities.
• Article 19: International human rights organization focused on freedom of expression and information, with trustee Barbora Bukovská serving as Senior Director for Law and Policy. Direct mission overlap with Courage's journalism and truthteller defense work.
• Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ): International press freedom organization that documents attacks on journalists, advocates for their release, and coordinates coalitions including the 200+ organization Gaza access letter co-signed by Courage. Comparable mission around journalist protection with broader global institutional footprint.
• Defending Rights & Dissent: US nonprofit focused on defending civil liberties and government accountability, including whistleblower protection. Long-standing coalition partner with Courage on press freedom campaigns including the Assange defense and Palestine-related journalist advocacy.

Emerging players

• Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF): Digital civil liberties nonprofit advocating for privacy, free expression, and whistleblower/source protection in the digital age. Connected through founding advisory board member John Perry Barlow (EFF co-founder); overlapping mission on source protection and surveillance.
• Center for Constitutional Rights: US legal advocacy nonprofit that litigates cases involving government misconduct, civil liberties, and international human rights — overlapping with Courage's Espionage Act defense and whistleblower protection mandate through legal-action rather than fundraising.
• RootsAction: Online advocacy network mobilizing grassroots campaigns on progressive and civil-liberties issues. Coalition partner with Courage on the 2024 journalists' letter to Secretary Blinken regarding Palestine and on whistleblower protection efforts.

Others

• WikiLeaks: Publisher of leaked documents and Courage's longest-standing strategic partner — Julian Assange served as Courage Trustee and was the organization's primary campaign beneficiary for over a decade. Not a fundraiser or grantmaker, but the originating ecosystem from which Courage emerged.

Broad incumbents

• Open Society Foundations: Large philanthropic foundation supporting human rights, press freedom, and government accountability globally. Indirect peer as a major institutional funder in the same thematic space; vastly larger scale but comparable mission elements on transparency and rights protection.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/couragefound
• Facebookfacebook.com/couragefoundorg

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Courage Foundation