Hear My Voice, a non-profit poetry organization based in the City of Tshwane, is excited to announce the third round of its mobility fund. This initiative is a key part of Hear My Voice's broader literary exchange program, which has been running since 2013. The objective of the fund is to promote international artistic diplomacy and incentivize global literary festivals curators to feature South African poets, while also encouraging the intra-provincial mobility of South African poets within the country.
Artistic diplomacy is an essential aspect of promoting cultural understanding and fostering connections between different communities worldwide. Through the Hear My Voice Mobility Fund, South African poets have the opportunity to travel and perform in different parts of the world, creating meaningful connections with the global literary community. By doing so, they can showcase the unique voices and perspectives of South Africa's spoken word artists and engage with other cultures, promoting cross-cultural understanding and appreciation.
"We believe in empowering spoken word artists to share their unique voices with the world. The Hear My Voice Mobility Fund is a tool to give South African poets the opportunity to travel, perform, and create meaningful connections with the global literary community," says MoAfrika wa Mokgathi, Director, and Co-Founder of Hear My Voice.
The fund will contribute up to a maximum of R10 000 towards travel costs or performance fees for South African poets. Previous beneficiaries of the fund include Emmah Mabye, Tshepo Molefe, vangile gantsho, Quaz Roodt, Hope Netshivhambe, Solly Ramatswi, and Sabelo Soko, among others. Through the fund, these poets have traveled both virtually and physically to countries such as Germany, Malawi, Australia, and the Netherlands, as well as to different provinces within South Africa.
The Call for Applications opens on 09 May 2023, with a deadline of 31 July 2023. Applications will be reviewed weekly. Hear My Voice invites all eligible platforms to apply and encourages South African poets to showcase their talent to the world. For more information and to apply, please visit www.hearmyvoice.co.za.
Submission link: https://forms.gle/uSHswaawhibbeArc6