Emerging Talents: Starting Power Programme
Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Arts Council, is taking applications for Starting Power, a design programme for up to six young designers finishing their first project after graduation. The page says applications open on 1 September and close on 15 October at 23:59 CEST; it does not print the year, and 4 October 2026 is inside that window. The contribution is CHF 5,000 plus online coaching in English o...
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Up to six places. A financial contribution of CHF 5,000 and individual online coaching on project development, sustainability, business strategy and finances, marketing and PR, and pitch training. The programme runs nine months, starting by mid-December and ending by the end of September. The general requirements say a project must be adequately co-funded by other public or private means. The page does not state an application fee.
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Young designers of all disciplines who have completed their design-relevant training within the last 18 months before the deadline and have not yet launched a project on the market. The general requirements on the same page say the project is developed or implemented by artists and cultural practitioners who verifiably hold Swiss citizenship or are permanent residents of Switzerland, or by an independent group or cultural institution whose place of production is in Switzerland. The following are excluded: commissioned work and projects that are part of an advertising campaign; unique pieces, craft projects, new editions and collectible projects; promotional platforms or publications.
Dates & details
- Deadline
- 15 October, 23:59 (CEST). The page does not print the year. Applications can be submitted from 1 September, and 4 October 2026 falls inside that window, so the deadline used is 15 October 2026.
- Programme dates
- Nine months, from mid-December 2026 to the end of September 2027. The page says mid-December and the end of September without years; those years follow the October 2026 deadline.
- Duration
- Nine months of online coaching, sessions agreed individually with the experts.