UPDATE related to COVID-19:
The health & safety of our grantees & partners are paramount and we are committed in supporting the safe distancing measures implemented by governments in Asia & Europe. As such, we regret to announce that the ASEF Mobility First 2020 open call (general open call) is now cancelled. Kindly check our website for further updates on our other special open calls.
Read more about Mobility First!’s response to Covid-19 here.
In the meantime, #stayconnected and #stayinspired by the social initiatives of Mobility First! alumni here.
Looking for funding to travel to a festival, workshop, training, or research trip in the arts and culture?
Apply to #MobilityFirst!
2020 marks the fourth year of Mobility First! and to date, we have supported 312 cultural professionals to facilitate cultural exchange between 48 ASEM countries.
Mobility First! is the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF)’s travel grant for artists and cultural professionals.
We invite eligible arts practitioners from Asia and Europe to apply to our periodic competitive open calls through an individual application.
International travel support is then granted to selected cultural professionals in Asia and Europe to participate in activities that are integral to their professional development; that would initiate a multiplier effect to others and benefit the society.
Applications are welcome from individual artists/cultural professionals who are:
- nationals/citizens of any Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) partner country
- working in any artistic genre (such as visual arts, performing arts, film, heritage etc.)
- at least 18 years old at the time of travel
- seeking support for travel within the ASEM region
- not recipients of the Mobility First! grant in 2019
Mobility support is provided to selected applicants for travel from Asia to Europe and Europe to Asia.
Applicants should be seeking support for travel within the ASEM region.
The list of ASEM partner countries are:
ASIA | |||
Australia |
Indonesia |
Mongolia |
Singapore |
Bangladesh |
Japan |
Myanmar |
Thailand |
Brunei Darussalam |
Kazakhstan |
New Zealand |
Viet Nam |
Cambodia |
Korea |
Pakistan |
|
China |
Lao PDR |
Philippines |
|
India |
Malaysia |
Russian Federation [1] |
[1]Note: Russian Federation is considered as a country in Asia in the ASEM context
EUROPE |
|||
Austria |
Finland |
Lithuania |
Slovakia |
Belgium |
France |
Luxembourg |
Slovenia |
Bulgaria |
Germany |
Malta |
Spain |
Croatia |
Greece |
Netherlands |
Sweden |
Cyprus |
Hungary |
Norway |
Switzerland |
Czech Republic |
Ireland |
Poland |
United Kingdom |
Denmark |
Italy |
Portugal |
|
Estonia |
Latvia |
Romania |
The Mobility First! grant is intended for covering international travel and visa costs only.
Accommodation and any other costs (such as per diem, registration fees etc.) are excluded from the grant amount.
The grant amount provided by ASEF will be capped at 50%, based on the mobility route and destination country which you are intending to visit.
The mobility call will be open and accepting applications from Monday, 20 January 2020.
Applicants can expect to hear feedback about their application in 2 cycles – March and May (tentative).
All travel should take place between 20 January to 30 November 2020.
Read our Application Guidelines
Check out our Mobility First! 2020 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Read Changes to our Grant Scheme
For other queries, drop us an email at: mobilityfirst@asef.org
Link to the application form can be found here