About the Grant

Shared Ecologies, a program by the Shyama Foundation, invites applications from photographers and lens-based practitioners responding to conditions of ecology. The Shared Ecologies Photo Grant will support a successful applicant towards the completion of an ongoing project or for the production of a new body of work. Please read more about the scope of the grant below.

The Shared Ecologies Photo Grant was initiated in 2022. The inaugural grant was awarded to Zishaan A Latif, to support his proposal and ongoing project ‘No Place Called Home: Climate Refugee and Citizenship’. With the grant, Zishaan is furthering his investigation into the unique topography and climate of Assam, as he addresses the ecological realities of vulnerable communities in the region who have been termed “Climate Refugees” with time.

While ecological conditions are changing on a global scale, with the acceleration of climate change, this open call invites investigations into local and regional narratives that visibilise these very changes. Here, photography and lens-based media become a tool towards examining the sociopolitical climates arising from a precarious position as one species amongst several, amidst political turmoil. In order to expand on our understanding of a matrix of impossible conditions, it becomes imperative to examine the effects of such through a structural approach.

Where does climate change become visible and where does it lie invisible, and what can photography explicate about the world? Imaging becomes a form of imagining the world.

This Shared Ecologies grant invites proposals for photography projects grounded in research-based practices, and which attempt to (re)locate, reorient, reconstitute, revitalise strategies and narratives within localised or overarching conditions, using photography as a primary, but not necessarily only, medium. Experimental approaches are also welcome.

Submission Procedure

Completed application form and PDF including all necessary material to be uploaded via Google Form.

Eligibility Criteria

The proposed project must use photography as a primary medium. Exploration of relationships to other mediums, and experimental formats are encouraged.

Indian citizen and permanent resident

Above 18 years; no age limit

Selection Process

Through an announced jury whose decision will be final

Grant Amount

Rs. 3.5 Lakhs: for artist fee, research, travel and production (made available in 3 instalments) 

Grant Timeline

Two year timeline for completion of project, with grant commencing in March 2024.

Grant Ambit

The Grant will attempt to support the successful applicant in research, as required, of the outlined project/body of work, along with mentorship. Please note that the grant amount cannot be used towards the purchase of equipment including cameras, tripods, laptops, printers etc.

The grant will facilitate interactions or feedback sessions with mentor(s) as required by the project, separate to the provided budget.

Grant Output

Successful completion of project

Public presentation (online or offline) of research and work

Online publication of body of work on Shared Ecologies Website, and other possible exhibitory/ publication forms dependent on development of the proposed project.

Application Requirements 

(to be submitted in a single PDF file of up to 10 MB in size)

1. CV and Artist Bio
2. Portfolio of ongoing or older photography works with captions, and other materials as appropriate: 15-30 images
3. Detailed and clear Project Proposal (with reference/ documentation images, if available for an ongoing project): up to 1500 words
4. Statement of intent around applicant’s ecological practice/engagement with questions of ecology: up to 300 words
5. Proposed budget (with artist fee of up to 20%) and clear timeline for completion of project.