Requirements

• Both organizations and individuals are eligible to apply.
• All applications from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean. For a specific list of the countries. 
• This call for applications supports cultural initiatives in all artistic disciplines at the exception of what is detailed below.

The Prince Claus Fund does not support

• The development, scripting, production and post-production of short and full-length documentary, animation, experimental, or feature films
• Research and writing of literary works, novels, short stories, poetry, or biographies
• Scholarships
• Infrastructural costs
• Projects that develop commercial software

The deadline for the submission of projects is 17 June 2012. Only applications received before the deadline will be considered.

Please note that the processing time is approximately 4 months as of the end date of the call.

Criteria for the Evaluation of Applications

• Quality: Assessing the grantee's methodology and artistic/cultural quality of the proposed project.
  
  What is the quality of the proposed project? What is the artistic/cultural value? What demonstrates the high quality in this project? Are the results specific, achievable, realistic, measurable and do they meet a specific deadline? To what extent is there coherence among the identified project objectives and expected outcome and results? Is the applicant (institution or individual) capable of implementing the project in terms of experience, professional background, education and talent? What is the organisation's track record?

• Social/developmental relevance: Assessing the proposal's content, significance and importance to the community and society in which the project activity takes place.
  
  What is the project's relevance and significance to the country's and community's context? How does the activity engage with society? Does the project address current events and issues facing the country, region, community under consideration? What spin-offs or impact will the proposed activities create?

• Innovation: Assessing the contribution the proposed activity would make in its field or genre and its potential for impact in the local context.
  
  To what extent does the project demonstrate originality and new approaches in its content and methodology? Does the project address issues that are unusual and open possibilities for dialogue and/or new interpretations of the social and artistic environment? Will the activity bring in new ideas/perspectives? Are applicants using new tools and forms of expression? Does the project offer new insights? Will innovative collaborations and networks be used?

• Cost: Assessing whether the proposed project's costs corresponds to the project output.
  
  Is the budget reasonable and suited to the project's objectives? Is the proposed expenditure justified?

The Fund’s current themes are:

• Culture and Conflict: Exploring the role of culture in communities that are experiencing or have experienced conflict or profound social upheaval.

• Zones of silence: Spaces where resources and opportunities for cultural expression, creative production and research are limited or restricted due to marginalization, repression, poverty, exclusion, war and/or unjust local or national government.

• Beauty in context: The creation of beauty in places where ugliness seems to have triumphed through war, poor government or other forms of misfortune.

Grant Guidelines

About Prince Claus Fund’s Grants

• Proposals submitted after the deadline will not be considered.
• In the event that the grantee does not sign the grant contract within 60 days upon receipt thereof, the grant will be canceled.

Eligible Candidates

• The Prince Claus Fund invites all parties working in the cultural and artistic spheres in the countries included in the current call to send their project proposals regardless of age, years of experience, nationality, ethnicity, religion or any other factor.
• This includes individuals and organizations concerned with culture and development.

Eligible Expenses

• Prince Claus Fund only covers project-related expenses, and not running operating costs.

Place and Duration

• Prince Claus Fund will not provide support retroactively, i.e. to projects already implemented
• The Prince Claus Fund will only accept proposals for activities that start at a minimum 4 months after the deadline of the deadline of the call for proposals.
• The project’s timeframe should not exceed 12 months

 
Eligible Applications

• Previous grantees may not apply for a new grant unless the previous grant expired before the application submission deadline for this year.

How to Apply

• Applicants may file applications online on our website.Links to work samples on sites such as YouTube or Vimeo can also be added directly into the application. Photos, documents can also be directly uploaded in the electronic application form.
• You will receive email confirmation once the online application has been received. You are advised to follow up on receipt for mailed material, as we will not contact you if any part of your application is incomplete.

Evaluation and Selection Process

• The grant recipients’ names will be published on our website.

Grant Contract

• Prince Claus Fund will draft a contract to be signed by the selected grantees. The contract will include contract start and end dates, grant amount, financial requirements, payment schedule, general provisions, implementation and amendments, required reports, and project results.

Payment Schedule


• A grantee will receive 25% of the grant total amount as a first payment. Once a first progress report has been received, a second installment of 50% will be made. Once the project is complete and the grantee has submitted the deliverables, narrative and financial reports, the remaining 25% will be transferred.

PCF's grant selection aims to ensure that projects are selected in a transparent and fair manner, according to clear criteria and a rigorous selection process where due consideration is given to all proposals that meet our eligibility requirements.

Evaluation Process

Phase 1: Intake

Proposals are screened in order to verify whether they fall within the Fund’s criteria for consideration. Only activities that commence within four months after the deadline will be considered.

Phase 2: Evaluation of Applications by the Program Committee

The Program Committee evaluates all applications according to the following criteria: Quality, Social/developmental relevance, Innovation, and Cost. The following themes are also evaluated: Culture and Conflict, Zones of Silence, and Beauty in Context.  Each criteria will be given a score between 1 and 3 quantified as follows: 1 = low, 2= medium, 3 = strong.  (Please find detailed descriptions of these criteria and themes below.)

Phase 3: Research and Approval

The selected proposals will be researched and second opinions gathered from independent experts. Although applicants may provide references, the Prince Claus Fund always seeks independent and objective opinions for each proposal. Based on the results of this phase, the Program Committee approves or rejects a proposal.

Phase 4: Reporting, Evaluation and Communication

Once approved, the applicant is notified about the amount of financial support allotted. A contract is drafted and signed by both the applicant and the Prince Claus Fund. The grantee is announced on the Prince Claus Fund’s website.

Timely reporting and communication are preconditions for continued support. After finalization of the project, the project and the degree to which the objectives have been fulfilled are both evaluated and documented. Exemplary completed projects that the Fund has supported are exhibited on the website and shared within its network.

Should you wish to apply for support you can fill in an online application form.