AIFIS-Luce Small Grants for Public Programs

Call for Applications

The American Institute for Indonesian Studies (AIFIS) invites applications from artists, performers, translators, and other creative scholars who are actively working to bring Indonesian arts and culture to American audiences. The AIFIS-Luce Small Grants Program provides competitive grants for public-facing events and projects designed to broaden popular understandings of Indonesia among U.S. audiences.

Four (4) grants will be awarded at a fixed amount of $2500 per proposal in this application period, open November 15-December 15, 2024. This is the the final phase of awards offered through this current Luce grant managed by AIFIS.

This fellowship program is made possible with the generous support of the Henry Luce Foundation.

  • The diverse arts of Indonesia have long been what attracts people to study the vast archipelagic nation. Works of visual and performing arts, language study, translation, and other content of cultural exchange are important platforms for broadening popular awareness of Indonesia and strengthening its global relevance. The AIFIS-Luce Small Grants Program is designed to build capacity at minor sites of Indonesian studies and among communities of the Indonesian diaspora in the U.S. By funding a variety of small-scale initiatives in a competitive quarterly grant, AIFIS works to decentralize and widen public knowledge on Indonesia in the U.S. in order to advance both scholarly and popular understanding of Indonesia for the American audiences. Impact from these grants should serve to advance knowledge on Indonesia at K-12, undergraduate, graduate level and general populations at large, as well as provide outreach and collaboration with members of the Indonesian diaspora in the U.S. who are not connected to institutions of higher learning or the academic field of Indonesian Studies. Small grants are not designed for individuals to travel to present papers at conferences, unless it is part of a performance or other such event at a conference. Preference will be given to projects that foreground collaboration between U.S. and Indonesian participants as well as that produce open-source content for public dissemination and/or curriculum development beyond the event.

  • Program events in this round of applications are funded at a set $2500 amount for each event proposal, with the expectation that these events will reach wide public audiences in the US and / or involve open-source distribution of materials.

    • Grants are openly available to projects that fit within the Program Description and Objectives above.

    • Preference will be given to projects designed to build capacity at minor sites of Indonesian studies and among communities of the Indonesian diaspora in the U.S.

    • Applicants will be considered without regard to race, religion, sexual orientation, age, and/or disability.

  • Open Application: November 15, 2024
    Deadline for Application Submissions: December 15, 2024
    Panel Review: December 2024
    Notification of Grant Decisions: January 2025
    Grant Activity Period: February 2025 - June 2025 (no extensions available)
    Deadline for Final Reports: 30 days after proposed event

  • Projects must be designed for audiences in the United States.

    All projects should contain a detailed timeline of spending as it aligns with the proposed event. The final expiration of grant usage is June 15, 2025.

    Concurrent awards or matching funds for the proposed event are encouraged, please indicate in the budget where / if matching funds are available.

    AIFIS does not advise grantees on tax questions.

    Grantees are required to submit a final report within 30-days after the proposed event.

    Grantees are eligible for only one award within the 2024-2025 calendar years.

  • Applications must be submitted via the online CAORC & ORC Grant Application Portal (SMApply).

    Applicants may “add collaborators” for additional members of the project team when uploading the application materials via the online portal. They will then be sent an invite link from the “CAORC & ORC Grant Application Portal” (noreply@mail.smapply.net) to set up a personal login to access the application portal.

    Award notifications will be made available to each applicant via email and through the SMApply portal. Expect results in January 2025.

    Please check your application carefully before submitting it. Failure to answer all questions may disqualify you from consideration. On the SMApply website, please also remember to “mark as complete” all required phases of the online application form.

Application Instructions

A complete application consists of: 

  1. Completed AIFIS-Luce Small Grants Application Form submitted online through the CAORC & ORC Grant Application Portal (SMApply), together with the following documents: 

  2. Small Grant Proposal: In 1200 words or less, please describe the nature of your proposed project by providing some background to the event and the overall goals and objectives of the proposed project. Please also address the relevance of the proposed project to the field of Indonesian Studies and/or communities of the Indonesian Diaspora and how it aligns with the AIFIS-Luce Program Objectives mentioned above.
    - Accepted File Formats: pdf, .doc, and .docx

  3. Event Terms of Reference (TOR): In 1200 words or less, please provide the following information:

    a. Event Description: Provide a brief abstract of the event (max 300 words) that can be used for AIFIS’ promotion of the event.

    b. Event Budget: Include a brief budget for how the $2500 funds will be allocated. If there are matching funds, please mention them briefly in the budget.

    c. Proposed Timeline: Please include both the timeline for the event and ideal timeline for the distribution of funding as it aligns with your event preparation.

    d. Publicity and Participation: Plans for publicizing the event, projected audience participation, and plans for sharing results with relevant organizations, open-source content, and/or curriculum development. 

    e. List of Key Personnel: Please include the Name, Role in the proposed project, Institution, and Email Address for all key organizers and/or performers who will be directly involved in the usage of grant funds.
    - Accepted File Formats: pdf, .doc, and .docx

  4. Curriculum Vitae for Key Personnel: Applicants should include a CV for each of the Key Personnel listed in the Event TOR (max 3 pages per CV).
    - Accepted File Formats: .pdf, .doc, .docx

  5. OPTIONAL Media / eFliers / ePosters: Applicants may include any media materials already created for the event. If a project is awarded, AIFIS requests additional media be created and/or updated with the AIFIS logo included in all promotional designs. 

Start your application

If your event proposal is awarded:

  • A member of the AIFIS-Luce Small Grants Selection Committee will contact you by email in January 2025 in order to confirm your program details.

  • The grantee must provide an updated TOR to account for any changes since the proposal submission, along with bank information to transfer the grant funds. The funds will be transferred at a maximum of one week before the event.

  • The grantee will be expected to provide a flier for the event with the AIFIS logo attached. AIFIS is happy to facilitate the creation of event fliers upon request.

Activity Report: After the program is complete, the grantees are required to submit an activity report to AIFIS that includes the following components: 

  • 5 high quality digital images (JPEG) of the event or screenshot if the event is held virtually

  • 1-page narrative report on event outcomes (audience numbers, open source output, and other narrative details)

  • Scan of expense receipts

Grantees must submit all documents via email to aifis@aifis.org no later than 30-days after the event.

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