With the BIC Foundation serving as Global Anchor Partner, the Fund is building a global coalition dedicated to increasing investments in cultural and creative organizations

Recognizing that creativity, which is critical to 21st-century skill-building, remains grossly underfunded and undervalued, the Moleskine Foundation and BIC Corporate Foundation today are joining forces to build a global coalition focused on driving greater investments in cultural and creative organizations worldwide.

The Moleskine Foundation launched the Creativity Pioneers Fund in 2021 to help creative and cultural organizations sustain essential programs during the COVID-19 pandemic while also strengthening their ability to serve their communities in the long term. Now, the BIC Corporate Foundation is joining the Fund as a Global Anchor Partner to both expand its global impact and inspire other leaders in the creative community to champion the power of creativity to catalyze social change.

“Organizations from UNESCO to the World Economic Forum now recognize that creativity is essential to solving the world’s most pressing problems,” said Adama Sanneh, CEO of the Moleskine Foundation. “We are thrilled to join with the BIC Corporate Foundation to amplify our shared vision that change starts with creativity, bold ideas, and unconventional thinkers willing to take risks.”

Sanneh added: “Our goal is to engage and mobilize stakeholders across the creative ecosystem, to commit expertise, resources, and investments to contribute to building the Fund into a powerful global force for change.”

The Creativity Pioneers Fund provides unrestricted €5.000 grants as it believes organizations know best how to spend the funds effectively and focus resources to move their missions forward. Applications are currently being accepted for the 2022 round of grants. The deadline for application is August 12, 2022.

Alison James, Executive Director of the BIC Corporate Foundation stated: “At the BIC Corporate Foundation, we believe in the power of creativity to drive social impact. The Creativity Pioneers Fund is an excellent opportunity for us to build an alliance amongst creative enterprises all over the world to activate a Creativity for Social Change movement. With the help of other likeminded organizations, we will be able to build a strong global community to support our youth and enhance creativity for generations to come. We’re excited to build this innovative ecosystem that will proactively assist our Creativity Pioneers and maximize their impact in the world by providing a platform for creative expression, a network of support and an acceleration of skill development”.

In 2021, the Creativity Pioneers Fund supported ten organizations in ten countries across four continents. Grantees included the Somali Arts Foundation, the first contemporary art institution in Somalia, which offers training in photography, cinematography, and content production to young creative women in Mogadishu; Oroko Radio and Artist Residency, an independent internet radio station based in Accra, Ghana and artist residency reclaiming and recentering narratives from the African and Diasporic artistic communities; and NYC SALT, a non-profit based in New York City that empowers underserved youth to reach their full potential through photography, video, and an understanding of the visual industry.

Kikelomo Oludemi, the founder of Oroko Radio & Artist Residency, said the Fund was the first to recognize the value of her organization, and she credited the Fund’s support with helping her organization grow at a challenging time during the pandemic.

“Much like Oroko Radio is becoming a support network for musicians and artists, being part of the Creativity Pioneers provides valuable growth opportunities,” said Oludemic. “Beyond receiving critical funding, we have had the opportunity to exchange ideas with other like-minded organizations, share learnings, and connect with other grantees’ respective networks.”

About Moleskine Foundation
The Moleskine Foundation is a non-profit organization that pursues a mission of “Creativity for Social Change.” A central belief is that creativity is key to producing positive change in society and driving our collective future. Its focus is to inspire, empower and connect young people to transform themselves and their communities. To do so, the Foundation implements a set of unconventional educational programs that unlock the creative potential and develop change-making attitudes in youth. The Foundation enables collaborative processes to generate spaces where criticality and imagination can occur. It is done through the development of a global platform of cultural and creative partner organizations operating in the field of creativity for social transformation.

While sharing the core brand values around creativity and culture, The Moleskine Foundation operates in complete independence from the Moleskine Company from an organizational and operational standpoint. The brand’s financial contribution sustains the Foundation, allowing 100% of additional resources to be directly invested in programs. 

About BIC Corporate Foundation
The BIC Corporate Foundation’s mission is to drive access to quality education for all, focusing on the development of creative skills in children and youth from underserved communities. At the Foundation, we believe in the power of creativity as the driver of change and in fostering creativity in all its forms. Thanks to its actions, the Foundation has positively impacted over 155,000 lives all around the world. More information is available at https://us.bic.com/en_us/bic-corporate-foundation