Mobility First! is an initiative by Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) aimed at supporting the mobility of artists and cultural professionals for cross-border activities including participation in workshop/training, conference/forum, festival/biennale, residencies, partnership meetings, research trips, short-term exploration/networking.
Mobility support is provided to individuals to travel from Asia to Europe, Europe to Asia.

Who can apply
– Individuals artists/cultural professionals who are: 
– Artists & cultural professionals from any artistic genre (such as visual arts, performing arts, film, heritage etc.); 
– nationals/citizens of any ASEM partner country and seeking support to travel within the ASEM region;
– at least 18 years old at the time of travel;
– not recipients of the Mobility First! grant in 2019.

Applications focusing on contemporary artistic and cultural disciplines are encouraged.
Applicants may seek travel support to participate in any of the 7 types of eligible activities.
 

Activities supported
Applicants may seek travel support to participate in any of the 6 types of eligible activities:
1. Workshops or trainings;
2. Conferences or forums;
3. Festivals, bienniales, or international exhibitions;
4. Artists’ or writers’ residencies;
5. Partner meeting/s to set up or maintain an existing partnership
6. Practice-led research.

In addition, the following focus areas will be prioritised:

• Skills transfer/ knowledge exchange; 
• Innovation in arts and culture; 
• Local cultural development; 
• Art and society.

Travel regions
The initiative promotes cultural mobility from Asia to Europe; from Europe to Asia. All travel must be international.
Asia:  Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Russian Federation, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam;
Europe: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.

Travel period
Travel should take place between 20 January to 30 November 2020.

Grant
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 can vary according to each application, based on the mobility route and destination country which you are intending to visit.

How to apply
Applicants should apply here.
 

Deadline: 30 November 2020.

Find out more here.