Supporting Travelfor Engaged Partnerships
STEP travel grants support creative and critical artists and cultural changemakers travelling across Europe and its neighbours, to help foster a society with greater solidarity, participation, equality and a stronger sense of social justice.
Eligibility criteria
1. Applications are considered only by cultural practitioners who:
- are based/active in one of the following countries: Albania, Andorra, Algeria, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kosovo, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia (FYROM), Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, The Netherlands, Norway, Palestinian Territories, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine and the United Kingdom
- are at least 18 years old at the time of travel
- have had few professional travel opportunities
- are travelling to the destination country professionally for the first time
- are collaborating with the partner organisation for the first time
- are not currently in any other contractual agreement with ECF
2. The applicant should have (at least) one committed partner organisation in the destination country that:
- is from the independent cultural, or social sector (but working with culture)
- is committed to engaging in reciprocal knowledge exchange and equal partnership with the applicant
- will acknowledge the STEP support in any communication material deriving from the travel
3. Applicants can represent an organisation, if it is a not-for-profit professional organisation. Commercial enterprises, student, volunteer or amateur associations are not eligible for STEP support. The same applies for partner organisations in order for them to be eligible STEP partners.
4. The deadline for submitting the application is a minimum of 50 days prior to the departure date.
5. Only fully completed applications will be taken into consideration for further assessment.
6. The same individual can only be awarded once for a STEP travel grant.
7. A maximum of two individuals can be awarded for the same initiative, with individually written and submitted personal applications for each traveller and clearly justified and complementary roles for each person in the travel itinerary. Each application will be considered individually.
8. The following are excluded from funding under the STEP programme:
- art therapy
- lobby activities
- commercial activities
- internships and volunteer work
- pilgrimages and religious missions
- trainings for professional development
- primarily educational/academic projects or research 4
- summer camps, summer schools and student exchanges
- travels for tourism and personal development purposes
- jury memberships, award ceremonies, competitions or auditions
- travels that are a part of the traveller’s organisation’s regular activities
- festival and conference attendances that are not in line with our eligibility criteria and priorities
- folkloric events and initiatives that focus on presenting or conserving ethnic, national or any cultural heritage
- performing and promotion tours, recording sessions and residencies with only facilities provided (limited collaboration).
Conditions
The minimum distance travelled must be 100 km by the straightest route (as calculated already automatically in the application form). Travels between 100 and 700 km must happen by train/coach, unless not possible due to political/infrastructural reasons.
The grant amounts are not negotiable. STEP Travel Grants are only meant as a contribution towards international travel ticket expenses (and visas, if applicable). If your travel expenses exceed the grant allowed, we encourage you to look for additional support elsewhere.
Procedure
Only complete applications written in English by the person travelling will be considered. Applications should include the following:
- a completed application form
- a completed budget
- a personal CV, including travel history (max. 2 pages)
- a digital copy of the invitation letter(s) in English, personally addressed to the traveller, including:
- full name, address and official logo of the partner organisation
- a signature by the representing contact person o name and address of the traveller
- acknowledgement of the collaboration
- an activity plan for the applicant’s visit
- an indication if any costs will be covered by the partner organisation (cash or in-kind)
- acknowledgement of the STEP travel grants support in any communication material deriving from the visit.
For more information click "LINK TO ORIGINAL" below.