Which doors are real.
A curated board for jobs, grants, fellowships, open calls, speaking opportunities and partnerships that may be useful to AfroSwissters and the people in our network, in Switzerland and beyond.
We do not publish everything. We look for opportunities that are practical, credible and aligned with our values: cultural participation, women's empowerment, Afro-diasporic identity, professional growth, community care, international exchange and fair access.
The AfroSwissters Opportunity Board exists because access is not only about finding information. It is about knowing which doors are real, which ones are worth your time, and which ones were not designed with us in mind — but can still be entered, challenged or reshaped.
Why this board existsMeaningful work or paid project opportunities · grants for cultural, social, educational or community initiatives · fellowships, residencies and leadership programmes · open calls for artists, researchers, speakers and moderators · partnerships connected to Africa, Switzerland, culture, equity, innovation or diaspora engagement.
Each opportunity is checked for relevance, source quality, deadline and basic eligibility. AfroSwissters does not guarantee selection, funding or employment. Always read the original call carefully before applying.
We prioritise opportunities that are paid, accessible, transparent and mission-aligned. We do not prioritise unpaid labour, vague “exposure” offers, predatory application fees, unclear organisations, exploitative internships, discriminatory eligibility criteria or calls that do not provide enough information to assess them safely.
This board is part of AfroSwissters’ Grow and Thrive work: helping our network move from connection to capacity, from information to action, and from isolated opportunities to shared access.
Know of a relevant job, grant, open call or partnership? Send it to us. We especially welcome opportunities that create access for Afro-descendant communities, migrant communities, artists, founders, researchers, cultural workers and emerging professionals in Switzerland.
Live opportunities, sorted by deadline.
CARE SheConnects Digital Accelerator: Africa
Closing soonPartner opportunity · Digital inclusion · Closes 8 July 2026Awards of roughly USD 500,000–1,000,000 over 18 months for African digital-inclusion and women's-empowerment work. Relevant if AfroSwissters partners with African community-tech organisations. Verify the call page at source before applying.
ARUA Early-Career Research Fellowships
Schliesst baldFellowship · Research · Deadline 15 July 2026 (option 2)At least 70% of fellowships are reserved for female candidates — useful for African women researchers and academic community members connected to Africa-focused research. Official ARUA link to be confirmed — verify at source.
UNESCO Youth for Peace: Intercultural Leadership Programme
Ferme bientôtFellowship · Leadership · Deadline 19 July 2026, 23:59 CET · ✓ verifiedUNESCO's flagship intercultural-leadership programme: 50 leaders worldwide, USD 10,000 seed funding for a community initiative, mentorship and a global alumni network. Eligibility 25–45. This year's theme: human connection and dialogue in the age of AI. Strong fit for community builders working on dialogue, cohesion and belonging.
British Council Cultural Protection Fund 2026–29
Chiude prestoGrant · Cultural heritage · Partnership · EOI deadline 20 July 2026 · full application 28 August 2026Useful for Africa-linked cultural-heritage partnerships, especially where AfroSwissters collaborates with institutions or community organisations. Verify the fund page at source.
Pro Helvetia — production grant
Open nowGrant · Swiss artists · Application window 1 July – 1 September 2026 · ✓ verifiedFrom 2026, production grants (and grants for production with presentation) are open once a year, 1 July to 1 September. For nationally active artists based in Switzerland — relevant across AfroSwissters' cultural network. Childcare support contributions available.
Horizon Europe Cluster 2 — Cultural Heritage & Creative Industries
Jetzt offenGrant · Consortium · Research · Proposal deadline 23 September 2026Strategic consortium opportunity with universities, museums, cultural institutions and research partners. AfroSwissters would join as a community/practice partner, not lead applicant. Verify the call on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal.
GCSP Prize for Innovation in Global Security
Ouvert maintenantPrize · Innovation · Peace · Deadline 23 September 2026Geneva Centre for Security Policy prize — relevant for community safety, anti-racism, peacebuilding, civic innovation or diaspora security projects. Verify the prize page at source.
PhotoVogue MENA Panorama Open Call
Aperto oraOpen call · Photography · Diaspora · Open until 24 September 2026 · free submissionOpen to artists 18+ from the MENA region and its diaspora; total grants USD 8,000. Relevant for North African, Egyptian, Arab-African and MENA-diaspora creatives in the AfroSwissters orbit. Official PhotoVogue link to be confirmed — verify at source.
Sources worth returning to.
Stadt Zürich — Integrationskredit
Grants · Community projects · Rolling · larger requests decided 31 March & 31 October · ✓ verifiedCHF 200,000 per year supporting 30–40 smaller integration projects. Applications possible year-round; requests above CHF 5,000 are decided twice yearly (31 March / 31 October deadlines). Strong fit for AfroSwissters’ programming on belonging and cultural participation in Zürich.
Kanton Zürich — Förderung von Integrationsprojekten
Grants · Community projects · Per programme cycle · ✓ verifiedCantonal funding for projects serving people with migration history — social contact, knowledge-sharing, protection from discrimination and racism. Useful for larger AfroSwissters project applications at cantonal level.
Migros Culture Percentage — national funding
Grants · Culture · Society · Rolling · apply at least three months before project start · ✓ verifiedMigros' national funding hub for culture and society. Useful for larger AfroSwissters formats around cultural participation, learning, public programming and community access.
Kanton Zürich — Swisslos-Fonds
Grants · Non-profit projects · Rolling by fund rulesSupports larger one-off non-profit projects in culture, education, social affairs, health, sport and leisure. Potential route for bigger AfroSwissters events, education formats or community infrastructure. Official fund page link to be confirmed — verify at source.
Pro Helvetia — START grants
Grants · Swiss artists · Open year-round · ✓ verifiedSTART grants are open year-round and can support the initial phase of a new project, before the production phase — a flexible entry point for artists in our network.
cinfoPoste
Jobs · International cooperation · ContinuousThe Swiss portal for jobs in international cooperation, in Switzerland and abroad — development cooperation, humanitarian, peace, human rights and global-affairs roles.
Impactpool — Switzerland
Jobs · International organisations · ContinuousLive Switzerland listings across ITC, UNECE, ICRC, UNEP, UNCTAD, IOM, UNICEF, UN Women and more — Geneva/Basel international careers, internships and consultancies.
ReliefWeb — jobs
Jobs · Humanitarian · NGO · ContinuousHumanitarian and development jobs including live Switzerland postings — NGO, partnerships, fundraising and programme roles. Its open API also powers part of our scanning pipeline.
On the Move — open calls by country
Open calls · Arts mobility · ContinuousContinuously lists cultural-mobility opportunities by destination country — artist residencies, mobility grants and cultural-exchange calls.
Sessionize — calls for speakers
Speaking · Visibility · ContinuousAggregates open calls for speakers across conferences and user groups (including Swiss tech events). A useful automated source — filtered hard for mission relevance before anything reaches this board.
Not open today — worth tracking.
OHCHR Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent
WatchFellowship · Human rights · Geneva · 2026 applications closed 15 May · programme runs 9–27 November 2026 · ✓ verifiedIntensive human-rights training at OHCHR Geneva for people of African descent from the diaspora with 4+ years of relevant experience — fully funded, part of the Second International Decade for People of African Descent (2025–2034). Highly relevant to Afro-descendant advocacy and visibility; we track the next call.
Migros Culture Percentage — Sparx Call for Ideas
WatchOpen call · Young creatives (18–28) · Next call expected from ~20 August 2026 · ✓ page verifiedSparx funds groups of 2–4 young creatives with studio time, coaching and financial support. The call is currently closed; recent cycles opened on 20 August. Good for young Afro-diasporic artists and cultural workers — check the page as the date approaches.
Pro Helvetia — residencies & research trips
WatchResidency · Arts exchange · Residency call open 1 January – 1 March each year · ✓ verifiedUp to three-month residencies connecting Switzerland with Pro Helvetia's liaison regions — including West, Central, East and Southern Africa and the Arab region. Strong Africa–Switzerland cultural-exchange fit; research trips can be submitted any time, at least three months ahead.
UNITAR / Government of Japan — Empowering Youth and Women
WatchFellowship · Africa innovation · Cycle-based — watch for the next callFor youth and women professionals aged 18–35 from eligible Anglophone Sub-Saharan African countries (incl. Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe). Relevant for Africa-based partners and members with networks on the continent. Verify at source.
L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science — Switzerland
WatchPrize · Research · Women · Annual — watch for the next Swiss callNational awards supporting women researchers in Switzerland. Official Swiss programme link to be confirmed — verify at source.
Curated, not collected.
Jobs & Paid Work
NGO, culture, foundations, DEI, international organisations, social impact, communications, partnerships, research, education, tech-for-good.
Grants & Funding
Community funding, cultural funding, integration funding, women's empowerment, anti-racism, youth, migration, social innovation.
Fellowships & Learning
Leadership programmes, research fellowships, capacity-building, professional development, global youth and women's programmes.
Open Calls & Residencies
Art, culture, writing, film, photography, research, conferences, exhibitions, residencies.
Speaking & Visibility
Calls for speakers, panellists, moderators, conference contributions, media visibility.
Partner Opportunities
Consortium calls, institutional collaborations, sponsorships, corporate community programmes, Africa–Europe bridges.
Every entry is screened for mission fit, practical value (paid, funded, career-building), realistic eligibility, source credibility, accessibility and timing — and verified against the official source before it carries the AfroSwissters name. Status labels tell you where things stand: Open now, Rolling, Closing soon and Watch next cycle.
We automatically exclude: pay-to-participate offers and high application fees, unpaid work disguised as fellowships or internships, calls with no organisation name, contact, deadline or criteria, manipulative urgency, requests for personal financial information before official selection, expired calls, and “visibility” that comes with no compensation, travel support, ticket or clear value.