DAE Community Grant

Whether it is organising a feminist zine making workshop or an inclusivity peer support group, a decolonial book club or a collective storytelling event, a platform for civil discourse and engagement or round tables on design - the DAE Community Grant encourages students to consider our school as a laboratory, a think tank, a testing ground for alternative modes of thinking and doing through small scale extra-curricular initiatives. 

Interested students or student collectives can apply for the micro-grant through submitting an application package, detailing their proposal, intended impact, timeline and budget. Each grant application can request up to 300 euros and is meant to reimburse material costs, production costs, or other relevant expenses. The micro-grant scheme operates on a rolling basis throughout the academic year. The application process will remain open until all funds are dispersed. 

Application form is downloadable on the right column of this page. Read below about the background, frequently asked questions and examples of past projects from the Community Grant. Other further questions can be directed to community@designacademy.nl . 

The DAE Community Grant (formally known as Community Experimental Grant) is initiated and run by DAE’s Community Organiser, with support from the Executive Board and the Communications Presentations and Public Relations department. Since its inception in 2023, the micro-grant scheme has received over 80 applications and funded over 60 community projects and initiatives. Some past projects include:  

→ Tutti by Tereza Hubová, a communal cooking and dining experience designed specifically for collaborating with strangers (fellow students who you do not already know).  

→ Design Roundtable by Dan Eawes is a roundtable series that brings together two groups of designers; who despite occupying the same small city of Eindhoven - never overlap, to discuss what design is. The “critical designer” from the MA programme and those who work for ASML. The roundtable formed part of Dan Eawes thesis research, which could be found [here](link) 

→ (M)Art by Macarius Eng Chern Yu and Hanna Matera is a pop up design market for students of the Academy to sell their objects to the general public.  

→ mnemotope magazine was the collaborative project of Lilou Angelrath and Réiltín ní Aodhagáin, a community magazine and open mic event that exists to provide a wide and welcoming platform for the brilliant stories that traditional literature often overlooks. mnemotope has subsequently become their joint graduation project, winning them the René Smeets Award in 2024. 

→ ND*work//shop by Daisy Dawson and Valentine Langlais is an initiative that seeks to create spaces and visibility around neurodivergency through a series of objects and events for other students within their everyday educational environments. The project contributed to Daisy’s graduation projects, the Inclusive Club Collective Kit, winning her the Planetree Design Award. 

→ Big Gathering by Rebecca Rubay Bouman is an ongoing research project that seeks to work with fellow students, educational and organisational staff members to discuss what a design curriculum would look like if it is centred around acting proactively in response to climate emergency.  

→ GeoFrames: A student-led screening series establishing a framework for experimental moving image 

→ Bisou Bisou Tiramisu initiated by Juliët Nijland is a student-led performance platform: a space where queer experimentation and collective creation can keep growing, one layer at a time. 

→ What is the evaluation criteria? The applications will be reviewed based on their intended community impact, relevance, feasibility and reach.  

The selection process includes consideration of groups and topics that are structurally or historically underrepresented and favours proposals aimed at these subjects and groups. Applicants are welcome to reach out via community@designacademy.nl if they want to discuss their application before submission. Should you require extra help with writing/typing due to injury or other reasons, you are also welcome to request a meeting for a spoken application. 

→ How many times can I apply? One successful application will be granted per academic year to each student or student group. 

→ Can my project happen outside of DAE? While it is not encouraged, we understand that not everything is possible within the building of the Academy. Should your application involve doing something somewhere else, we would like to recommend taking accessibility into consideration when choosing your alternative location. 

→ Do you have to use the whole 300 euros? No, your application could also request less than that amount. 

→ What if I need more money for my project? You can consider this micro-grant scheme as a seeding grant for further ambitious projects - as a support for your proof of concept and then apply for additional funding elsewhere. If your project is a group project with several meetings organised with a group of students, you are welcome to reach out to discuss. Additionally, if you wish to do a follow up project with a different group, or in the following academic year, you are more than welcome to apply again. 

→ Can I apply with a project that I've worked on within my class? Yes. That being said, the project should be community oriented. 

→ Can my departments or studio apply as a whole? 

Unfortunately, the community grant exists to support what is NOT already covered within your curriculum. If you have any requests that are curriculum related, it is best to contact your respective coordinators.  

→ Can I invite external partners? Yes, bringing in speakers, workshop facilitators, experts, researchers, other collaborators, etc from outside of DAE is permitted, under the condition that the project is aimed at least partly at the internal community. In the case of inviting an external speaker at DAE, we recommend you contact the DAE Lecture Series as they are always looking for speakers that are of interest to the DAE community! Email them at lectureseries@designacademy.nl. 

→ Can I use the grant for an external community project? No, completely external community projects are not supported by the grant. The main aim of the grant is internal community building, meaning the chief beneficiaries need to be your fellow students or staff members. Projects bringing external parties together with DAE community members (beyond the applicant) can be considered. 

→ Can I collaborate with an external party on a community project? Yes, collaborating on something that you started at DAE with an outside party or organisation is permitted. Please indicate your collaborator(s) in your application. Do keep in mind that your project must at least partially be aimed at the DAE community. 

→ Can I further develop my project, publish about it, exhibit it? Yes, you are free to further develop your project for a class, research project, collaborate on it further with external parties, publish about it and exhibit it. However, costs associated with these activities will likely not be reimbursed by the community grant. 

→ Can I use the grant for publishing? Potentially, it depends on the project. The grant can be used to publish for instance a collective zine made with content that is developed between several students or student groups. Please outline in your application how this publication might contribute to a community impact. It cannot be used to publish your thesis. 

→ Can I use the grant for showcasing/exhibiting my work? The community grant cannot be used for materials or travel expenses for students presenting their projects, for example exhibiting your solo work at a design week. 

However, if the projects being presented are collectively created using the community grant, or the exhibition itself has some activation/performance moments or post exhibition component that will have involved more than the exhibitor/creator, or will have lasting impact to the community - the grant can certainly support that. Please outline the intended impact in your application. 

→ Do I have to do anything after I have completed the proposed project?  

A brief report and photo documentation is required from applicants upon the completion of their projects. If you are doing a publication, DAE would love to receive a few copies for archival purposes. We also reserve the right to ask for additional material for promotional/documentation purposes. 

→ What happens when my application is not approved? You will receive an email within three weeks with the decision regardless of the outcome. If you don’t hear back within three weeks, please reach out again. Feedback will be available upon request and you are more than welcome to re-apply with a modified application.