Home Grants Metsän puolella initiative (“In the Woods“) Metsän puolella: Guidelines for making a grant application Guidelines for making a grant application Apply for funding by submitting your application and attachments using the Online Grant Service. The ongoing call for proposals will remain open for several years. GrantsFor grant applicants Kone Foundation’s focuses in awarding grants Criteria for applying Evaluation and decisions Guidelines for making a grant application Propose a peer reviewer Frequently asked questions For grant recipients General information about the grant Grant payment, social security and taxation Grants+ Project communications Kamari – “The Chamber” Kone Foundation logos and mentioning the Foundation’s support Funding programmes and thematic grant calls Funding programme: Is Democracy Eroding? (2021–2025) Thematic grant call 2022: The current state and challenges of Finnish democracy Thematic grant call 2021: Language, Power and Democracy Previous thematic grant calls Metsän puolella initiative (“In the Woods“) Metsän puolella: Guidelines for making a grant application Vuoden Tiedekynä Academic Writing Award You can go directly to each section by clicking the titles below. Go back to the top of the page by clicking the black arrow at the bottom right corner. Application form and the online grant service Attachments Evaluation and decisions Application form and the online grant service Apply for funding by submitting your application and attachments using the Online Grant Service. Log in to the Online grant service by registering and selecting “Register as a grant applicant here”. Once you have registered, a confirmation email will be sent to the email address you have provided. The email address also serves as your username. Only applications submitted using the Online grant service will be considered. Log in using your account information, or if you are a new applicant, register as a new user. Create a new application -> In the woods Fill in the required information. Submit the application to Kone Foundation. Applications cannot be sent via email or post. The application form Application type Individual applicants fill in the application under their own names Working groups the members of the group must elect a leader to submit the application in his/her/their own name. You may also give your working group a name. organisation with a with a Finnish business ID a leader must be selected for the project. Read more about the role of the project leader. Application form tabs 1. Applicant Fill in the basic information required on the application form. The details for working group members who are not applying for a personal monthly grant must also be listed on this page. Working group members’ names will be published on Kone Foundation’s website. 2. Type of project The applicant must choose a category for the project: Research Art Research and art Another type of cultural work You may also list on the form keywords or fields related to the project and its themes. 3. Description Fill in the working title. In the summary (max. 2,000 characters), please provide a short description of your project’s or study’s primary content and the intended methods for implementing the work. You must also provide a more detailed work or research plan as an attachment. Applicants’ summaries are important in the evaluation of the applications – the summary is usually the first section the evaluator reads from the application. The Foundation may use applicants’ titles and summaries in the Foundation’s communications (such as on its website), and the text from these sections will be published if the grant is awarded. The applicant must provide a brief description of the project’s duration and a timetable on the application form. 4. Funding On the application form, select the primary purpose for the funding: Academic research and/or artistic work Doctoral thesis Popularisation of research Organising an event, exhibition or other production The applicant must select whether the grant request is for a multiyear project or a project lasting a maximum of one year. The Foundation is willing to support an unbroken span of work. If you are planning a multiyear project such as a doctoral thesis, we recommend that you apply for funding for the same project at once. Fill in the information for the monthly grantee(s). Individuals doing scholarly or artistic work are awarded personal working grants instead of salaries. Grants awarded by private foundations such as Kone Foundation are exempt from taxes below the limit of the Finnish state grant for artists. Kone Foundation funding is specified as personal monthly grants and other expenses on the application form. The amount of the personal monthly grant varies, depending on the stage of your career. Grant classifications for the grant call are: Grant 1: early career applicants and those working on their doctoral thesis €2,700/month (€32,400/year) Grant 2: mid-career applicants (min. 10 years of artistic work) and those working at the post-doctoral level €3,200/month (€38,400/year) Grant 3: late-career applicants (min. 20 years of artistic work) and experienced researchers (e.g., adjunct professor level, ‘dosentti’ in the Finnish academic system) €3,800/month (€45,600/year). If you are applying for monthly grant 2 or 3, please describe your career phase. Personal monthly grants are usually awarded for full-time work for a minimum of one month. Smaller grants are available (25%, 50% or 75% of full grant) for part-time work. Recipients of annual grants can take around one month of holiday per year without their grant being suspended. Compensation for work lasting less than a month, such as a performance fee, can be applied for under ‘other expenses’ but not as a monthly grant. When applying for funding to cover fees and salaries, the applicant can include taxes and additional costs in the total amount of the other expenses being applied for, if necessary. If funding is requested for other expenses (e.g., travel, salaries, materials), a budget must be included as an attached PDF. If you apply for funding for travel expenses, we encourage you to avoid flying if possible and to favour low-emission travelling. Flights within Finland, which should be avoided for sustainability reasons, can be funded only when they are well justified. 5. Other funding Please list all grants received during the preceding three years for the project. Applicants are requested to inform Kone Foundation immediately if other funding is received from any other source. Kone Foundation grants are usually not awarded to applicants who have already secured financing for the project in question (grant or salary) for the entire upcoming year. 6. Evaluators The applicant will select which field they want the expert assessing their application to represent. A maximum of three selections can be made, but please note that the applications will generally be assessed by one’s first choice of expert. If your application is multi-disciplinary, you can choose up to three reviewers, but choose the profile closest to your work as profile no. 1. If you are applying for a grant for doctoral thesis work, even in artistic research, please choose the first evaluator profile from the profiles listed under Research. 7. Attachments and links See the section Attachments 8. Proximity According to the Foundations Act (a Finnish Law), all foundations are required to provide information on their transactions with related parties. The Act has a broad definition of a related party of a foundation. Please note that related parties may apply for funding from Kone Foundation. 9. Submission Only applications submitted via the online service will be considered. If, after submitting your application, you wish to edit the text before the deadline, please choose “cancel application”. This does not clear your application data. After editing the application, please submit the application again. No separate email will be sent upon receipt of the application. ATTACHMENTS The applicant’s ability to successfully complete the project is evaluated based on the work plan, curriculum vitae and other supporting documents attached to the application. All necessary attachments should be uploaded to the Online Application Service and attached to the application as a PDF. The maximum size for one file is 6 MB. Please select the file type from the drop-down list on the online application form. Please note that we cannot accept attachments by mail or email. Required attachments research or work proposal curriculum vitae budget (a budget is included in the application if the applicant is applying for more than a monthly grant) portfolio (applications for artistic work or artistic research) recommendation (compulsory for doctoral researchers, recommendable for post-doc researchers in their early career) copy of degree certificate (research applicants) Work group: research or work proposal curriculum vitae for each project member (or summaries) budget portfolio (applications for artistic work or artistic research) copy of degree certificate (individual research applicants with monthly grant) Organisation with a Finnish business ID: research or work proposal curriculum vitae for each project member (or summaries) budget portfolio (applications for artistic work or artistic research) copy of degree certificate (individual research applicants with monthly grant) copies of the annual report, financial statement and auditor’s report from the previous year Description of attachments Research and work proposal The maximum length of the research or work proposal for individual applicants is 4 pages, including bibliography. The maximum length of a research or work proposal for work groups or institutions is 8 pages. In the evaluation of proposals, attention is paid to: merit (academic merit in research projects) feasibility implementation of the Foundation’s key focuses In general, the research proposal should include the following sections: Introduction: the background of the research and its subject matter, as well as the significance of the proposed research in light of this background. Aims and objectives: what is to be studied and why. The objectives must be indicated as clearly as possible, for example through proposed research questions. Research materials and methods: the research data or literature and the method chosen for analysing or handling these materials. Work outline: a short estimate of the expected duration of each phase of the project. References and sources: a concise list of the most important sources of the research. It is important to clarify the theoretical framework behind your research. In doing so, follow the practices of your own field. We fund research in a broad range of disciplines and do not aim to teach academics how to perform their research. It is also important to highlight the ways your work responds to the Foundation’s key focuses. If you have received funding for the same purpose from Kone Foundation, the plan should provide a brief account of what has been accomplished during the previous Kone Foundation funding period and the project’s current status. In addition to the above-mentioned, the research proposals for work groups or institutions should include: Names of participating researchers Indication of applicants’ familiarity with the subject An explanation of any possible multidisciplinarity or interdisciplinarity factored into the project. Projects that are not research projects must include an attached work plan. A sufficient work plan answers the questions: Why? How? When? Who? and Whom with? The work plan for artistic work may include several projects or parallel productions to be worked on during the grant period. For artistic work applications, the objectives and content of the work plan may be a description of the artistic practice and/or a future exhibition, performance, etc., if known at the time of application. The work plan should include: project aims and objectives a description of intended working methods names of the participants and possible partners schedule ways in which your work responds to the Foundation’s focuses If you have received funding for the same purpose from Kone Foundation, the plan should provide a brief account of what has been accomplished during the previous Kone Foundation funding period and the project’s current status. The work plan for work group must highlight the role of each person involved in the project. Curriculum vitae (CV) CVs of all persons of the work group working with a grant must be attached to the application. Please also attach the CVs of other members of the core team if their contribution to the project is relevant. The purpose of the CV is to provide a concise overview of the applicant’s education and experience. It should include work experience, previous research, previously received grants, key publications, presentations given and teaching experience. It is especially important to include information of particular relevance to the project for which Kone Foundation funding is being sought. A researcher’s CV can be based on the template provided by the Finnish Advisory Board of Research Integrity. The CV should not exceed four pages. Please do not attach a separate publications list. The CV can also be a link to an online CV. Budget If a personal monthly grant alone is required to implement the project, there is no need to attach a budget to the application form. It is important to try to estimate costs plausibly and precisely in the budget. Other possible sources of funding must also be mentioned. Even if only a portion of the funding of a project is being applied for, the cost estimate for the entire project must be presented. In projects that span several years, it is better to devise the budget according to the years of activity rather than calendar years. Please prepare a separate budget annex for other expenses to be claimed for the project. Estimate the expenses realistically and accurately. Even if you are only applying for part of the funding from the Kone Foundation, you must submit a budget plan for the entire project. A detailed and itemised budget will make it easier for the Foundation to make a funding decision. For larger projects, the funding base may include several donors. Clearly indicate in the budget the contributions that will be requested from the Kone Foundation. In addition to a separate, detailed project budget, the budget must be outlined in the online application form. The project’s annual personal monthly grants and any other expenses of the project (such as travel, material and equipment expenses; additional labour force or salaries; and outsourced services and other costs) must be specified. In the budget, please indicate any overhead, if required by the research institution. Use the field ‘Other expenses’ on the online application form. Please note that Kone Foundation does not award more than a 15% overhead, and overheads are only counted as ‘other’ expenses, not as personal monthly grants. Portfolio Grant applications for arts and artistic research funding must include a portfolio. A portfolio showcases the artist’s ability in the relevant field and conveys an impression of them as an artist. A portfolio thus showcases the applicant’s level of artistic expression, quality of artistic thinking and any other particular proficiency that the applicant finds relevant to mention. The contents of the portfolio are to be chosen by the applicant. A portfolio can contain images, texts, links or a list of literary output. The portfolio can be submitted as a PDF, or you can compile it on your own website and include the link in your application. Recommendation Recommendations play an important role in grant applications for both doctoral studies (mandatory) and post-doctoral applications. Either a supervisor or other person familiar with the applicant’s work or the proposed project may submit a recommendation. If the same recommendatio source submits recommendations for more than one doctoral researcher, the applicants’ order made by the recommendation source plays an important role in the evaluation process. Recommendations can be submitted for other types of applications as well. In the case of art applications, a recommendation can help the evaluator in the evaluation process. The recommendation source should know the applicant and the project for which funding is sought well enough to add value to the application. For example, it may confirm the relevance of the project in the field of arts (projects that are innovative in the field) or open up the planned cooperation to the evaluator of the application. For an individual artist’s application, the recommendation does not carry much weight in the evaluation of the application. Certificates If the grant application includes individual researchers working as a monthly grant recipients, please include a certificate of their most recent academic degree and/or the most relevant certificates for the research project. A degree certificate can also be included in other applications, if desired, but it is most important for the CV to include education and qualifications. EVALUATION AND DECISIONS The applicant will select which field they want the expert assessing their application to represent. The evaluators change every year. The names of the evaluators are not disclosed. Peer reviewers can be proposed to the Kone Foundation using the proposal form. The evaluators do not see your previous applications or possible reports on your awarded grants. The Kone Foundation Board of Trustees makes the final funding decisions three times a year. The exact dates are not public. Average processing time for the applications is 3–6 months. We will send an email about the decisions to all applicants soon after the meeting at which their application was considered. The list of grantees will be published on our website and their names will be included in the Foundation’s annual report.