Design Trust offers grants to individual designers, curators, collectives and non-profit organisations for projects and activities that are relevant to various design disciplines. These grants support projects relevant to the context and content of Hong Kong and the Greater Pearl River Delta region.  Cities within the GPRD include: Hong Kong, Macau, Dongguan, Foshan, Guangzhou, Huizhou, Jiangmen, Shenzhen, Zhaoqing, Zhongshan & Zhuhai.

We support innovative, thought-provoking investigations in various design disciplines from graphics, media, wearables, architecture to the built environment; and actively aim to accelerate creative design and research development of meaningful projects.

These projects include but are not limited to: talks, exhibitions, residencies, research projects and creative installations.

DESIGN TRUST FEATURE GRANTS foster cross-disciplinary projects focusing on the Greater Pearl River Delta region. Projects awarded have a wide reaching audience and maybe sited in an exhibition or biennale venue with international recognition and standing. This Feature grant supports international exchanges between a HK/China based collective with an international renowned cultural institution. The grant aims to excel, share and build new knowledge and unique positions on the value of design.

DESIGN TRUST SEED GRANTS foster a culture of experimentation, testing and sharing. This grant is awarded to individuals seeking to kick start a meaningful and intellectual project with social, educational, economical or environmental impact for communities. Seed Grants may also be awarded for applicants who have a project in the pipeline that needs additional resources to complete the project. To further continue the mission of supporting emerging designers, and young scholars, Design Trust highly encourages applicants from Hong Kong and the region to apply for this grant to support projects showcasing work at international exhibition venues, attendance at an international symposium conference for a paper presentation or international biennales or design festivals to showcase prototypes, conference paper or works relevant to architecture, graphic, industrial or emerging design fields.

See here for past Grant recipients.

Objectives:

  • Development of research, design and culture of the GPRD region internationally
  • To provide funding support for the introduction of vibrant projects and events to the GPRD region
  • Funding for initiatives involving non-profit organisations, designers, curators and cultural practitioners.

Grant amount:

  • Design Trust Seed Grants are awarded HKD 50,000.
  • Annually, a Feature Grant is awarded and capped at HKD 300,000. This is available upon special consideration.
  • Design Trust may provide full or partial funding on a case-by-case basis.

Eligibility:

Applications are accepted from individuals, collectives and certified non-profit organisations who are either based within the GPRD region or are seeking support for design projects related to the region.

Application:

Applications will be reviewed on a quarterly basis.  Submission deadlines are on the 20th of January, 20th of April, 20th of July and 20th of October.

Late submissions will be considered in the next cycle.  We recommend applications be submitted at least 3 to 6 months before the project's commencement.

For more details on the application process, please click HERE.

Review and Selection:

Each proposal will be screened for eligibility and reviewed by an independent panel of evaluators.

Successful applications will be notified within 8 to 10 weeks from date of application.