Macondo Literally Festival-Call for applications for poets

Job Description

Macondo Literary Festival (Kenya) and the Scottish Poetry Library (Scotland) invite Kenyan and Scottish poets to apply for a writing stay at the Turkana Basin Institute (TBI) in Kenya in March 2025.
The aim of this project (funded by British Council and Creative Scotland) is for poets who put the non-human world (plants, animals, lochs, mountains) in all its forms at the centre of their artistic approach to work on expanding their own poetic perspectives and thematic concerns. There will also be the opportunity to engage with TBI researchers, whilst enhancing the ways in which scientific research is communicated.

The poets selected – two from Scotland, two from Kenya – will explore a unique natural environment to support and encourage their writing and engagement with non-human ecology. Guided by a Kenyan poetry practitioner, these explorations will be blended with writing sessions, for individuals, in pairs, and in groups. At the end of the week-long stay, the group will perform and present their work and ideas to a larger audience in Nairobi.

Northern Kenya’s Turkana region is famously referred to by anthropologists as the “cradle of humankind.” Although many research projects facilitated by TBI are focussed on human prehistory and biological evolution, this has expanded to include areas of sustainability, climate change, and modern human culture and diversity.

For Kenyan Poets

Application process:
Using the email hello@macondolitfest.org, please submit 2 pieces of poetry (any style / published or unpublished) and a max. 500 word proposal outlining how this opportunity would impact and develop your practice.
Please add your full name to each document you submit.
Please provide links to any video or audio content in a separate word or pdf document, as part of your application. Use a platform such as Vimeo / Youtube / Soundcloud or your own website / social media platform.

Deadline for all materials is midnight on Wednesday 22nd January, 2025

Eligibility:

Applications are welcome from any poet residing in Kenya
Poets must be aged over 18 after 31st December 2024
Please note accommodation in Nairobi cannot be provided for Kenyan residents

Payment and Package
All flights, accommodation and excursions in Turkana are covered. An honorarium will be made available for the selected participants.

For Scottish Poets

Application process:
Using this website form, please submit 2 pieces of poetry (any style / published or unpublished) and a max. 500 word proposal outlining how this opportunity would impact and develop your practice.
Please add your full name to each document you submit.
Applications may also be posted to the Scottish Poetry Library address below
Please provide links to any video or audio content in a separate word or pdf document, as part of your application. Use a platform such as Vimeo / Youtube / Soundcloud or your own website/ social media platform.
Deadline for all materials is midnight on Wednesday 22nd January, 2025.

Eligibility:
Applications are welcome from any poet residing in Scotland and writing / practicing in any form and working in any of the official languages of Scotland English, Scots, and Scottish Gaelic. Please provide translations in English for work in Scottish Gaelic.
Poets must be aged over 18 after 31st December 2024.
We particularly welcome applications from poets in Scotland of Black African & African Caribbean heritage. We have a representative writer/publisher on the selection panel.
We expect selected participants to possess eligible passports by the time of the visit and to ensure that they take necessary vaccinations and arrange travel insurance for visiting Kenya.
The Visa application process will be supported.
Applicants must be available to travel to Kenya in late March 2025

Payment and Package
All flights, visas, transfers, internal travel, accommodation, and excursions in Turkana are covered. An honorarium will be made available for the selected participants.

If you need this application in any other format, or have any other questions, please contact reception@spl.org.uk or hello@macondolitfest.org

Timeline:
Call closes 22nd Jan 2025
Panel meets online: 10th Feb 2025
Decisions Communicated: 11th Feb 2025

Turkana stay: March 30 to April 4
Selection Panel:
Anja Bengelstorff (Macondo Literary Festival), Ngwatilo Mawiyoo (Kenya), Dr Samuel Tongue (SPL), Nii Ayikwei Parkes (Flipped Eye Publishing)