One Ocean Hub calls an application Deep Emotional Engagement Program (DEEP) Fund. To foster the themes of our research, the Hub has initiated the ‘Deep Emotional Engagement Program (DEEP) Fund’ to commission artistic responses that capture connections with the ocean. The DEEP Fund will support creative projects that communicate individual and/or communal emotional bonds with the sea to a wide audience including policymakers and research institutions, as well as beneficiary communities in our partner countries.

Call for proposal 

The Hub currently invites proposals to the first round of the DEEP Fund. At this time, we are particularly interested in expanding international audience outreach for pre-existing cultural heritage and/or art-based projects under development in Namibia, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and the South Pacific as a means of sharing emotional engagements with the ocean.

The format of commissioned projects is entirely open, including, but not limited to: visual art, performing art, music, sound art, filmmaking, animation, digital art, fashion, literature, poetry, spoken word, craft, indigenous knowledge and customary practices.

Funding

Available project funding ranges between £5,000 and £20,000, although in exceptional circumstances this amount may be increased. Projects will be expected to last between 6 and 18 months, from commissioning to deliverables and final reporting. Commissioned projects will form part of a final year exhibition, with a virtual/online component to complement the display.

Eligibilities 

• Projects must be based in Namibia, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and South Pacific island nations (particularly Fiji and the Solomon Islands) on the DAC List of OAD Recipients www.oecd.org
• Projects must be conducted by individuals, non-government organizations, community sector groups or not-for-profit civil society.

Ineligibility

Proposals that are not eligible:

• Projects aimed at offsetting a deficit, repaying a debt, or paying interest.
• Projects sustaining ongoing activities with recurring costs.
• Projects financing permanent working spaces and/or equipment, exclusively.
• Projects financing capital works, physical construction, or the restoration of buildings.
• Projects affiliated with government agencies or political parties.
• Projects affiliated with commercial advertising campaigns.
• Projects that are environmentally hazardous or destructive.

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