Connecting Heritage, a showcase highlighting cultural assets of Bahnar and Cham communities, taken place at Temple of Literatre, Hanoi, from 1 to 7 December 2023 ©

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Background

Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth is a British Council programme taking place in Colombia, Kenya and Viet Nam, exploring the use of cultural heritage for growth that benefits all levels of society. In Viet Nam, the in-country Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth project – known as Heritage of Future Past – works with music and film heritage, in particular valuable aspects that are under-represented or at high risk of disappearing.

Implemented through two interlinked strands—Community Culture Heritage and Film-Archive-Music Lab (FAMLAB)— the former safeguards cultural heritage in target communities, while the latter engages the broader creative industry. This includes artists and practitioners, serving as a catalyst for collaborative projects involving Viet Nam's music and film heritage through contemporary pathways. From 2021, Heritage of Future Past supports the community with various activities, such as Heritage Storytelling, Community Cultural Heritage Challenge, and Digital Heritage Collection.

To facilitate reflection and learning from those involved in the Heritage of Future Past project, a community of practice (CoP) has been introduced in January 2024. Community members, project’s partners and grantees, and individuals/organisations interested and working in intangible heritage and sustainable development are encouraged to join CoP’s talks and connecting sessions. This provides a platform to formulate reflections, share best practices, and gain project management support for local cultural heritage safeguarding initiatives that directly benefit the community.

Call for Proposals

As part of Cultural Heritage for Inclusive Growth’s Community of Practice, the British Council is looking for proposals for Cultural Heritage and Sustainable Development small grants, offering opportunities for individuals and organisations to develop and implement projects and initiatives to utilise cultural heritage as a resource to address local development challenges. This programme aims to encourage local communities to participate and contribute to the intangible cultural heritage safeguarding and sustainable development in Viet Nam.

Individuals, communities, and organisations who wish to apply for the fund are kindly requested to submit their application before 01.03.2024 following the guidelines below.

Who can apply?

This programme intends to stimulate creative solutions and sustainable strategies, and we invite you to apply to this opportunity if you are working as an individual or in a group within a field that intersects cultural heritage, cultural industries, and socio-economic growth.

What activities to propose?

We do not limit the type of projects, initiatives, or business activities, as long as these are engaged with innovative approaches, encouraging community members to explore new ways of interacting with intangible cultural heritage and sustainable development. Here are a few suggestions for the types of projects and activities that are eligible:

  • A network or community supporting the connections among heritage bearers, community members and entrepreneurs.
  • An activity promoting and developing new and creative products based on cultural heritage. These activities can be carried out through researching and innovating traditional products, or advertising, connecting with the markets, displaying, and selling products, thereby generating incomes for the local community.
  • An activity aiming to utilise technologies for intangible cultural heritage preservation and promotion, where heritage bearers can benefit from.

We are inviting proposals for collaborative and creative initiatives which aim towards sustainable values and a long-term impact, with a view to benefitting the heritage sector in Viet Nam. We recommend project and activity proposals in which diverse segments of the community such as children, youth, men, women, the elderly, people with disabilities, people with low incomes or living conditions could join and benefit together.

Where should the activities take place?

To ensure a high commitment to the implementation and sustainability of the activities, we would recommend the activities to be implemented in Viet Nam.

What support will the selected projects and activities receive?

Each project application can propose a supporting fund of maximum £2,000 (approximately VND 60 million), including all applicable taxes. We expect this fund to be used as a seed capital for the community to develop and realise their business initiatives, hence other source of in-kind and in-cash contribution is also encouraged and be core to the project.

When should activities take place?

For monitoring and evaluating purposes, we recommend the activities using the seed funding to be implemented no more than six months – expectedly from March 2024 to September 2024.

Selection criteria

No. Criteria Grade
1

Relevance
- Cultural heritage and community of heritage bearers are the two main resources of the project activities

 40
2

Feasibility
- Evdence of track record of similar project in the past, efficient use of resources.
- Well-prepared application with a project implementation plan with accurate and reasonable budget

 30
3

Potential Impact
- The project’s results providing the community opportunity to value and benefit from the heritage socially and economically. Preferably in a new and creative approach.
- The project’s results potentially being further developed/adopted by the community.
- The project outcomes having the potential to develop and/or generate other sources of funding.

 30
TOTAL 100

Suggested Timelines

Tentative Deadlines Tasks
05.02.2024 Call for Applications
25.02.2024 Deadline for enquiries
01.03.2024 Deadline for Application Submission
11.03.2024 Announcement of selected applications
18.03.2024 Selected applicants start their project

How to apply?

Step 1: Download and fill in the form below (only in Vietnamese). Either typed or handwritten documents in Vietnamese is acceptable
Step 2: Send the completed application form to the email address vnarts@britishcouncil.org.vn or send the hard copy to the British Council Vietnam – Arts and Creative Industries, 20 Thuy Khue, Tay Ho, Hanoi by March 1, 2024, 23.55 Vietnam time.
Please send your inquiries to the email address nga.phan@britishcouncil.org.vn by 25 February 2024.

See also

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