The 2019 Mobility First! Call for Applications is now closed.
The 2020 call will be launched next year.
What is #MobilityFirst?
Mobility First! – ASEF Cultural Mobility Initiative is the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF)’s travel grant for artists and cultural professionals. Mobility First! supports a wide variety of activity types (workshop/training, conference/forum, festival/biennale, residencies, partnership meetings, research trips, short-term exploration/networking) with particular focus on these areas:
- Skills transfer / knowledge exchange
- Innovation in arts & culture
- Local development
- Art and social issues: the role of art & artists in society
Who can apply?
Mobility First! accepts two types of applications from:
1) Individuals – artists/cultural professionals looking to participate in any of the eligible activity types (outgoing mobility)
2) Organisations – arts organisations applying for up to 5 artists/cultural professionals they want to invite to an activity they are organising
Please refer to the Documents Section of this page for the Application Guidelines and Frequently Asked Questions
If you need any of the documents in an accessible format, please contact us:
Fatima AVILA (Ms)
Project Manager, Culture, ASEF
How to apply?
Application form for individuals: https://asefculture.formstack.com/forms/mobilityfirst2019
Application form for arts organisations: https://asefculture.formstack.com/forms/mobilityfirst2019orgs
Note: Please ensure that you read the Application Guidelines and the Frequently Asked Questions on the Documents Section of this page before you apply
Grant amounts
The grant amounts for 2019 are as follows:
| Grant amounts (up to these maximum caps) | |
| Asia to Europe and vice-versa | SGD 2,000 |
| Australia/New Zealand to Europe and vice-versa | SGD 2,300 |
| Russia to Europe and vice-versa | SGD 1,000 |
| Intra-Asia | SGD 1,000 |
Additional funding is available for people with disabilities and special needs
Travel regions
Mobility First! prioritises cultural mobility from Asia to Europe; from Europe to Asia; and, within Asia. All travel must be international. Eligible nationalities and destinations are Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) partner countries:
| Asia | Europe | |
| Australia | Austria | Poland |
| Bangladesh | Belgium | Portugal |
| Brunei Darussalam | Bulgaria | Romania |
| Cambodia | Croatia | Slovakia |
| China | Cyprus | Slovenia |
| India | Czech Republic | Spain |
| Indonesia | Denmark | Sweden |
| Japan | Estonia | Switzerland |
| Kazakhstan | Finland | United Kingdom |
| Korea | France | |
| Lao PDR | Germany | |
| Malaysia | Greece | |
| Mongolia | Hungary | |
| Myanmar | Ireland | |
| New Zealand | Italy | |
| Pakistan | Latvia | |
| Philippines | Lithuania | |
| Russian Federation[1] | Luxembourg | |
| Singapore | Malta | |
| Thailand | Netherlands | |
| Viet Nam | Norway | |
Timeline
|
Phases |
Dates |
|
Open call |
1 to 31 January |
|
Results |
28 February |
|
Travel period |
15 March to 31 July |
|
|
|
|
Open call |
15 February to 15 March |
|
Results |
15 April |
|
Travel period |
1 May to 15 September |
|
|
|
|
Open call |
1 to 30 April |
|
Results |
31 May |
|
Travel period |
15 June to 31 October |
|
|
|
|
Open call |
15 May to 15 June |
|
Results |
15 July |
|
Travel period |
1 August to 15 December |
Note: The deadline for each round of application will be 11:59 PM GMT+8 (Singapore Time).
Equal Opportunities
Mobility First! is an equal opportunities programme. Applications from artists and cultural professionals of any ASEM nationality, ethnicity, caste, creed, gender or sexual orientation are welcome. ASEF does not discriminate on the basis of age, disability or marital status.
