Call for Applications 2026

TheMuseumsLab 2026 | Call for Fellows

African and European professionals with at least two years of practical experience in a museum, heritage site or art space are invited to apply for a TheMuseumsLab 2026 Fellowship.

Starting online in May, and continuing onsite in Berlin and Kigali, TheMuseumsLab 2026 will bring together 50 Fellows and numerous scholars, practitioners, artists and activists, all connected to the museum sphere. Together they will explore the history, present and future of museums, exchange knowledge, ideas and best practices, and engage with various museum spaces on both continents.

Focussing on the overarching theme ‘Building Futures from Memory: Museums and Memorial Sites as Agents’, TheMuseumsLab 2026 is jointly organised by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin (MfN) and Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy. An international Academic Committee and TheMuseumsLab Alumni Network are part of the programme’s Steering Board and curatorial process.

Over 55 museums and cultural institutions from 16 countries are partners of TheMuseumsLab. The Programme is financed by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media and the German Federal Foreign Office. The Programme consists of one online and two on-site Modules as well as a Residency at either an African or European Partner Museum. The Programme is framed by a online Kick-Off and a Closing Event.

Who can apply?

• African and European Museum professionals who have at least two years experience of working in the museum, heritage, or art sector.

What we offer

• Three Modules (online and on-site) with multidisciplinary perspectives on current museum and heritage discourses, focussing on „Building Futures from Memory: Museums and Memorial Sites as Agents“

• Innovative formats of learning and workshops for practical skills

• One Residency in a tandem (one Fellow from Africa, one Fellow from Europe) at a renowned African or European Partner Museum of TheMuseumsLab

• Networking opportunities amongst Fellows and with international experts

• Certificate, issued by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), Museum für Naturkunde Berlin – Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science and Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy

• Access to TheMuseumsLab Alumni Network

• Partial cost coverage for the on-site Modules in Berlin (Module 2), Kigali (Module 3) and the Residency at an African or European Partner Museum according to DAAD regulations and German Travel Expenses Act. Please read the Call and Application documents carefully about what is comprised in the cost coverage and contact us if you have further questions before submitting your application.

Please make sure you have read all application documents carefully before submitting your application. Please submit your application via the DAAD portal the latest by 2 December 2025.

If you have technical difficulties uploading your application, please document these with screenshots and reach out to the technical support directly: portal@daad.de

For any other questions regarding the application please contact the DAAD TheMuseumsLab Team: mlab.berlin@daad.de

After the review by the official selection committee, the selected applicants will be notified by beginning of March 2026.