Arts Business: First Nations Development Fund (Australia)

Grants can be used to support, professional and workforce development, governance training, capacity building, temporary staffing, marketing, seed funding, building digital capabilities and strategic planning.

This fund should improve business skill, capacity and financial stability to increase opportunity for growth and elevate capabilities.

Funding Information

• This Fund provides grants from $10,000 to $50,000 to build sustainable business practices and support economic and capacity-building opportunities.

Eligible Activities

• Activities include but are not limited to:
  • An artist or designer purchasing a graphic design program, a short course in the program and a tablet to increase the mobility and quality of their design services
  • A musician purchasing a digital audio workshop, mentoring and studio time to boost the professional quality of their music
  • Community consultation and temporary marketing staffing to expand the audience and network of a growing organisation
  • Access costs are legitimate expenses and may be included in your application. They encourage applicants to ensure that their work is accessible to everyone
  • Build e commerce and digital platforms to streamline your business activities.

Ineligible Activities

• You can’t apply for:
  • Individuals and organisations which are not delivering cultural, creative or artistic work
  • Activities that have already taken place
  • Activities that have already been funded by creative Australia (for example, through your multi-year investment)
  • Activities engaging with First Nations content, artists and communities that do not adhere to the First Nations Cultural & Intellectual Property Protocols.

Eligibility Criteria

• You must be an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident to apply or an organisation based in Australia
• You must be a First Nations individual, group, or micro-organisation.

Ineligibility Criteria

• You can’t apply to this fund if:
  • You have an overdue report for another creative Australia grant
  • You owe money to creative Australia
  • Your organisation is not first nations led
  • Your project is already funded by creative Australia
  • You are receiving Multi-Year Investment from Creative Australia.

Assessment Criteria

• Quality
  • They may consider:
    • The merit of the business proposal provided or examples of previous practice
    • The potential, experimentation or ambition of the creative/group/micro-organisation
    • The creative skills or engagement to be gained through this opportunity.
• Viability
  • They may consider:
    • The relevance and timeliness of proposed activity
    • The skills and abilities of the people involved
    • Realistic and achievable planning and resource use to undertake the activities
    • The caliber and track record of your organisation, partners, and collaborators
    • Your previous experience delivering other projects/activities of similar size and scope.
• Impact
  • They may consider:
    • The benefit and impact on the career of the people involved and the ongoing development of the organisation/business
    • How the activity is relevant to the organisation/business
    • The potential to discover and develop new markets, relationships or meet existing market demand
    • The extent to which the activity contributes to a sector that is ethical, accessible, inclusive, and equitable.

For more information, visit Creative Australia.