SoC Open Call, 2025

For 2025 we will be selecting 16 Funded Projects: 8 ZHdK projects from currently enrolled or employed students and staff of ZHdK [Zürich University of the Arts], and 8 independent projects from proposals outside of ZHdK, including ZHdK alumni. The 8 independent projects can be from anywhere in the world, and do not have to be associated with an educational institution of any kind or have any specific level of education. For all the 16 projects we strongly encourage duos and collectives to apply, although we will be accepting projects submitted from individuals, duos, and collectives.

Each of the 16 projects will receive a total budget of 1,500CHF towards production and travel expenses, alongside access to publishing opportunities, accommodation in Zürich during the mid-year gathering, mentors/speakers, workshops on alternative ways and workings, peer learning, collaborations, and more.

What is School of Commons? 

School of Commons (SoC) is a community-based initiative dedicated to peer learning, and the study and development of self-organized knowledge production, located at the Zürich University of the Arts (ZHdK).

To date, we have supported 157 projects since our foundation in 2017, with the content and position of SoC being defined by our community. Over the 10-months of the SoC programme, research is conducted as peer-based collaborative endeavours with annually changing members. Each cohort brings together a wide range of participants, guests, and contributors who share their curiosity, skills, and visions - producing a broad, integrative understanding of knowledge. We offer personal support, financial resources, and an active community of peers and experts engaged in a wide range of topics.

SoC’s programme is developed bottom-up rather than top-down. Instead of providing a fixed curriculum, we encourage participants to actively shape our programme, either by organizing and hosting events themselves, introducing new lines of study, or by inviting guest speakers and tutors who are relevant to their research. SoC is there to support and help organize the educational programme our participants would like to have.

In short, SoC:

• Is a global community-learning environment dedicated to the study and development of self-organized knowledge through commons-based methods and practices
• Is located at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK), but mostly hybrid in format, taking place online, with some select offline events at the ZHdK, and selected venues across Zürich
• Brings together practitioners, researchers, facilitators, and activists from all disciplines for its 10-month peer-led learning programme
• Has a structure which is shaped based on the needs, requirements, and wishes of the participants
• Works with a broad network of partners who help to explore, shape, and share the future of Peer Education as an important strategy and method of lifelong learning.

If you would like to familiarise yourself with some of the key terminology School of Commons uses within this application pack, and as part of the learning environment, please refer to our Ways and Workings. If there is a term used in this application pack that you are unfamiliar with, please search for it in the Ways and Workings for further information and context. If there is a term used in this application pack that you are unfamiliar with, please search for it in the Ways and Workings for further information and context.

What does School of Commons offer to participants who are selected? 

• A one-off, unaccounted budget of 1,500 Swiss Francs towards production and travel expenses 
• A supportive learning environment
• Opportunity for collaboration and exchange, as well as peer-group and public presentation platforms
• Online and offline spaces to experiment with ideas, concepts, and practices
• Support with presentation structures such as the planning of exhibitions, events, and workshops
• Access to publishing opportunities, including our annual end-of-year publication: ISSUES 
• Access to ZHdK’s infrastructure during on-site events. Specifically: tech material, room-booking access, access to faculty members of ZHdK 
• Participation in our ongoing research project into ‘Accessibility and Inclusion in Digital and Hybrid Learning Environments’
• Participation in a 5-day workshop with CERN’s IdeaSquare on site at ZHdK
• Introduction to a growing SoC alumni network for mutual support and exchange
• Workshops introducing methodologies for peer learning and co-creation

What do School of Commons’ participants have in common? 

It is essential that SoC participants feel a connection to the main qualities that form the SoC learning environment, these are:

• Reciprocal exchange
• Experimentation
• Openness (towards one another, especially towards backgrounds and contexts unfamiliar to our own, towards definitions of, and approaches towards learning and knowledge, and towards the process of commoning, which very often requires working directly with those from outside of our own bubbles) 
• Conviviality
• Curiosity
• Committed
• Process-centred approaches

Who can apply to SoC?

SoC is open to all countries, backgrounds, ages, and disciplines, for applicants who are interested in the production and sharing of knowledge in the broadest sense, and who feel a desire to actively engage with, work as part of, and be in collaboration with a community of fellow thinkers and producers.

SoC has no set criteria in relation to formal or informal educational backgrounds. Previous participants have had a broad range of qualifications from non-academic, to BA, to PhD level, with backgrounds ranging from technical schools to art schools, to universities, as well as auto-didacts, makers, activists, and those with lived experience and tacit knowledge. SoC has previously had the pleasure of hosting artists, scientists, architects, geographers, designers, writers, and those who consider themselves between and outside of these categories, as part of the program.

SoC does not select based on discipline but is instead focused on those interested in, or working with alternative methods for learning, with an emphasis on wider definitions of knowledge and experience, as well as the desire and commitment to learn with and from others, and to engage critically and thoughtfully with the wider SoC community.

The main learning agenda of SoC is to produce and share practices based around the methods of peer learning and commoning. In doing so, we aim to encourage spaces for exchange and alternative ways and workings. Overall, SoC endeavours to be a place that produces and reproduces alternative modes of thinking and doing across research, disciplines, themes, and focuses.

What do School of Commons expect from applicants and participants? 

Over the 10-month programme, School of Commons expects, from each participant, their commitment and active participation, within their individual capacities. This is especially the case for allSoC activities and the wider learning environment that is produced collectively. Tuesday evening’s between 18.00-20.00 CET/CEST is scheduled School of Commons time, so participants should make this time free.A commitment to the following, within capacity, must be made:

• Weekly School of Commons meetings, Tuesday evenings 6-8pm CET/CEST 
• Facilitating one in the series of Kitchen Sessions
• Attending the SoC Gathering (04-07 July, 2025) 
• Contributing to the end-of-year ISSUES publication
• Participation (a variety of forms are possible) to the School of Commons Assembly in and across Zürich and online, 07-08, February 2026
• Actively using and contributing to our growing compendium of ways & workings, peer learning practices and commoning methodologies
• For the full schedule for the SoC Program 2025 please refer to page 4 of this document

During the 10-month program, participants will work on a project surrounding a topic, theme, or subject of their choice, in a manner of their own choosing. Participants are thus considered experts of their own research. SoC offers impulse activities including workshops, info sessions, and tutorials which aim to provide inspiration and foundational frameworks. This said, each participant is responsible for their own learning process, as well as that of one another. You will therefore be expected to take care of, and communicate your own needs and requirements, for which we can support by co-seeking the (re)sources, tutors, mentorship, methods, and/or collaborators necessary.

There are no set outcomes expected or required as part of acceptance into the programme. SoC values experimental ways of working which do not necessarily work towards predetermined outcomes.

What is the selection process?

Successful applicants should demonstrate clearly how they will contribute to the SoC structure by expressing the ways in which they plan to engage with the wider SoC community and shared learning environment, as well as the ways in which they plan to work collaboratively.

Selection is made by a group of peer reviewers made up of current or former participants of SoC. The selection committee chooses new participants entirely anonymously, based only on the submitted project plans and the applicants’ willingness to actively contribute towards a collaborative learning environment. CV’s or portfolios are not accepted as part of the application procedure, any and all identifiable information (name, country, educational and/or institutional affiliations) must also be entirely emitted from the application.

Successful proposals will therefore:

• Present clear information about the aims, methods, and openness of their project
• Provide sufficient information on the ways in which they wish to work within and contribute towards the collective learning environment of School of Commons
• Demonstrate a clear interest in peer learning and collective knowledge production and distribution, for example naming areas of the project in which collaboration is encourages or processes and methods can be actively shared
• If the project already exists, or is part of a larger body of work, the applicant must clearly state what specific area of the work will be developed within SoC, and how this area of the research specifically connects to SoC
• If applying as a collective, the applicant must explain how the collective will be consistently represented and present in the programme. I.e. Will all, or a select number of collective members attend the meetings and events, or will tasks be divided amongst the collective? We encourage consistency of representation throughout the program, even if this means only 1 or 2 members of a collective regularly attend meetings and activities. This consistency allows for community cohesion and trust building.

Selection is based on the completeness of submitted materials, the feasibility of the project, and how well the project connects to the aims and values of the SoC learning environment. Applications which include clear identifiable information (name, city/country, educational and/or institutional affiliations) will not be accepted for review.

There are two main categories for which applications are assessed. Under each category or sub-categories which must be taken into consideration:

CATEGORY 1: CONTENT OF THE PROPOSAL 

Content looks at the clarity of the proposals’ key questions, lines of inquiry and suggested ways of working, as well as the relevance of the project in relation to major societal issues, tensions and questions, current discourse on the topic, and the use of innovative and/or experimental approaches.

CATEGORY 2: MOTIVATION TO BE PART OF THE SCHOOL OF COMMONS LEARNING ENVIRONMENT 

Motivation looks at the proposals’ ambitions towards contributing to alternative forms of knowledge production and circulation, peer learning, commoning practices, and the overall ethos and spirit of the SoC learning environment. It also looks for a demonstrated commitment to actively exchanging, sharing, and collaborating with fellow participants, with clear examples of how this will be tangibly overseen, incorporating approaches based upon sharing, reproducing, and collaborating as part of the SoC learning environment to support this.

Please note: Applicants may submit one application only to the 2025 Open Call. Previous participants can only apply with an entirely new project with new collaborators. Participants may only join SoC for two consecutive years.

You can find out more about previous SoC participants and projects here. We encourage you to access our directory of Ways and Workings to help guide your application.

How will School of Commons be structured for 2025? SoC offers a learning environment and a 10-month programme structure that is evolved and shaped in dialogue with participants. As part of the 10-month programme, SoC helps facilitate an internal programme of open spaces and sessions with participants. This is combined with a series of public offerings, all of which are open access, and which help to make the knowledge and practices that arise from the programme through our participants and their processes, publicly available and shareable.   The proposed structure for the preliminary programme over the 10 months of April 2025 - February 2026 is as follows:

SCHOOL OF COMMONS 2025 SCHEDULE*

*Please ensure you are available for the following dates before applying:

WELCOME MEETINGS Tuesdays: 17h, 18h, and 19h CET/CEST [Online] Dates: March 4, March 11, March 18, March 25, April 1, April 8, 2025 These are one-on-one 45-minute sessions aim to build trust, address questions, and ensure accessibility. Participants will meet with SoC team members for individual discussions.

SoC KICK-OFF

Dates: April 11-13, 2025, times tbc. depending on time zone representation [Online] The Kick-off is an opportunity to connect, share, and learn with the rest of your cohort and the SoC team about the program and 10-months ahead.

GUEST LECTURE and WAYS & WORKING WORKSHOPS (W&Ww)

Tuesdays, 6-8 pm CEST [Online] 

Dates: April 22, April 29,May 6, 2025

The W&Ww (Ways & Workings Workshops) aim to enable self-organisation, with a 45-minute input from SoC followed by informal one-on-one or small group meetings.

KITCHEN SESSIONS

Tuesdays, 6-8 pm CEST [Online] Dates: May 13, May 20, May 27, June 3, June 10, June 24, July 1 

These informal sessions, focused on peer learning and exchange, are open to the public, unless a participant indicates otherwise. 2 projects will each have 45 min to share something about themselves and their project in the way of their choosing. We bring in the ‘kitchen’ element by eating together through Zoom during the sessions.

WORKSHOP WITH CERN / IDEA SQUARE

Dates: June 29 - July 3, 2025 [In Person, Geneva]

This five-day workshop, hosted in collaboration with IDEA SQUARE / CERN, focuses on ‘the future of collaboration’. The event kicks off with an on-site visit to CERN in Geneva on June 29. Participation is voluntary with limited funding support. Participation is open to applicants through an internal call.

SoC GATHERING

Dates: July 4-7, 2025 [In Person, with various modes of hybrid accessibility] 

Held at the Zürich University of the Arts, the SoC Gathering emphasizes peer learning, self-organization, commoning methods, and social interaction. One-third of the time is dedicated to inputs from the cohort, another third to the SoC team and external guests, and the remaining time is unstructured for surprise connections and collaborations to emerge.

SELF-ORGANIZED PROGRAM

Tuesdays, 6-8 pm CEST [Online] Starting Date: July 8, 2025

Additional Dates may include September 2, 9, 16, 23, 30; October 7, 14, 21, 28; November 4, 11, 18; December 2.

This phase focuses on self-directed and peer learning, with the cohort taking charge of program activities. The SoC team supports with resources, organisation, and feedback including one-on-one meetings, as well as managing public communications.

SoC ASSEMBLY Dates: February 5-8, 2026 [In Person with Hybrid Offerings]

The SoC Assembly is a public event designed to share processes and outcomes, engage with external partners, and ensure visibility for the cohort's work. Previous contributions have included time-based formats (talks, workshops), display formats (exhibitions), and publications. The scope and framing of the Assembling will be decided collectively between the SoC Team and Cohort. Preparations will be held on the following Tuesdays: December 9, 2025, January 20, 2026, January 27, 2026

The closing event will be held online on February 10, 2026, from 6-8 pm CET.

How to Apply 

Applications are submitted via this Google Form where you will be asked a set of mandatory questions to answer. You must answer all questions in full before you can submit your response.

No CVs, biographies or formal educational requirements should be included anywhere in the application form. Please refrain from including any key identifiable information about yourself. Applications must be submitted either in English or German. The programme is facilitated in English, so a confident grasp of the English language is required for full participation.

We strongly emphasise that if the above information is not followed, including if names or key information is included in the application, or if the application exceeds the word limits, the application will not be considered.

APPLY HERE The link to apply is: https://forms.gle/3QVnwoae8q3PcFK88

The application deadline is 23.59pm CET 01. Dec2024. For any questions, please get in touch at: hello@schoolofcommons.org. You will hear back with a response by February 07, 2025.

A dedicated Q+A session for the Open Call will be held via Zoom on Wednesday 16 October, 17.30-19.00 CEST, which we encourage you to attend.

For FAQ’s, please access our dedicated document: SoC OPEN CALL 2025 FAQs

SoC and Accessibility 

We actively encourage applications from individuals or collectives from underrepresented groups and who identify as BIPOC, FLINTA, LGBTQIA+ and those with a disability and neurodiverse conditions. 

Each participant will receive an access rider ahead of the SoC kick-off weekend, and we organise a welcome meeting for each participant or collective to discuss their needs and requirements ahead of the starting date where any needs, requirements, or desires can be communicated.

Over the course of the next few years, we will be undertaking extensive research on ‘Accessibility and Inclusion in Digital and Hybrid Learning Environments’. We intend to implement our findings directly within SoC, and welcome participants to contribute towards the research if they are interested or may find it useful.

The programme is facilitated in English, so a confident grasp of the English language, or access to translation tools is essential for participation. This said, we endeavour to find methods for making the programme accessible to include other languages within our resources and capacities. In previous years we have experimented with alternative methods for such accessibility including a range of transcription methods, and we are open to adopting further communication and documentation tools that may be useful for participants.

Most events are facilitated digitally and can be recorded upon request with written transcripts.We cannot promise to meet all accessibility needs and requirements. Instead, we promise to do our utmost to support you with your needs and capacities within the resources we can offer as a team.

SoC Code of Conduct 

This code of conduct is a basis for all our activities, gatherings, communications, and internal and external outputs.

It forms part of our committed pursuit to engendering a SAFER space (we acknowledge ‘Safe’ is a constantly evolving environment and set of conditions and commit to continuously revising and responding in relation to this). We further acknowledge that we come from different backgrounds, contexts, disciplines, and approaches and all have certain areas of unawareness, experiencing processes of learning and unlearning. Therefore, this Code of Conduct cannot account for all the ways that people might feel excluded, unsafe, or uncomfortable. It is also a tool to ensure we can best support the SoC participants, team, alumn* network, and our wider ecosystem and audiences. We commit to open dialogues, and, as such, this Code of Conduct is never considered finished and should change whenever needed. We will amend this document over time, so it reflects the priorities and sensitivities of SoC as it changes.   It is a collective responsibility for all of us to enact the behaviour described below and bring it to the physical and digital spaces of SoC. The code of conduct is a set of guidelines that helps establish shared values and ensures that behaviours that may threaten or harm participants is avoided. This document equally applies to the School of Common’s, team, participants, contributors, collaborators, and all those who engage and attend in our outputs and process. The document also applies to users and contributors to SoC’s online channels. The word ‘we’ that is used in throughout the document as it speaks to, and applies to all the above. Read our full code of conduct, here. 

Thank you for reading the full School of Commons Open Call 2025 document. If you have any questions regarding this document or your application, please contact directly us at hello@schoolofcommons.org.

We very much looking forward to receiving your applications.