Creative Climate Accelerator: Bradford

The Creative Climate Accelerator is a training and guidance programme for underrepresented creative changemakers working with culture or community organisations in Bradford to step into climate leadership.

The Creative Climate Accelerator Bradford builds on a 2024 pilot programme which supported participants to translate knowledge around climate issues into positive action. Participants are nominated by a Bradford-based organisation who commit to working with their nominee on a collaborative climate project in Bradford.

Essential information

The participant can be a staff member within the organisation or a freelancer / creative / associate. Support could include making time, resources, professional development, and/or other relevant support available to the participant.

Applications are live from October 23rd 2025 to November 28th 2025.

This five-part programme runs in January to March 2026, kicking off with an in-person event, followed by three online workshops, and a final in-person gathering. We expect the organisational contact person to also attend the in-person events. The programme is designed to be flexible to the needs of the group. Topics we cover might include: the causes of climate change; how we adapt to current and future impacts; climate justice; nature and biodiversity; communicating our ideas; or leading change. We will also support participants to work on action plans for their project.

Full CCA Overview

Who is it for?

This programme is for underrepresented creative changemakers in Bradford, for example, people of colour, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, or people from low income backgrounds. You might have some knowledge or experience in climate issues but would like to be supported to advance your skills.

We aren’t looking for experts, but you may already be on your climate journey. For example, you may have been part of writing an environmental policy for your organisation, a voluntary group around environmental issues, or have been involved in a creative project addressing climate change.

Participants will be nominated by a Bradford based culture or community organisation. You will be in current roles that have the ability or potential to make change happen, and this does not have to be tied to seniority.

The Accelerator will be hosted by culture and climate advocate Farah Ahmed (she/they); JB’s Arts Council England programme team Vicky Sword-Daniels and Hannah Graham; and sector-leading guests.
What is the benefit of participating in this programme?
- Nominating organisations will have dedicated support from the JB team and guests to develop climate action projects either within their organisation or through a meaningful partnership with a freelancer/associate
- The participant will have access to guidance and resources from the JB team to build confidence in their climate action projects
- Participants and their nominating organisations will be part of a network of supportive peers in Bradford.
“I applied for a developing your creative practice grant, as well as an AN bursary grant to deliver this project and have received both. The funding will allow me to push this work to its fullest. I feel that being able to say I was doing this project as part of this programme added real weight to the proposal.” – CCA 2024 participant

“CCA style space to think ideas through openly is invaluable.” – CCA 2024 participant
What would the nominating organisation need to do?
1. Consider who you would like to nominate to apply for this programme and collaborate with them to develop the initial project or action idea and application.
2. Define the commitment you are making to support the legacy project and the participant, (for example through space for them to work, mentoring, materials, funding to support their time/travel/plans); and ensure that there is structure in place to deliver on this commitment. If the participant is a freelancer, we would expect your commitment to include fair compensation for their time.
3. The nominating organisation contact person should be available to attend the final action planning session in person.
4. We strongly encourage you to support the travel costs for the freelancer to attend the in-person events, however if this proves a challenge or a barrier, please do get in touch with us at JB as we may be able to cover a small number of travel fees.
Overview and dates
Each online workshop will be hosted on Zoom, from 10am-12:30pm on the following dates. The first and final session will be held in-person in Bradford (location TBC).
- 3rd or 4th Feb 2026 (date tbc): Introductory workshop (in person)
- 11th Feb 2026: Online workshop 1
- 25th Feb 2026: Online workshop 2
- 11th March 2026: Online workshop 3
- 13th or 14th April 2026 (date tbc): In-person workshop (Action planning)
The Creative Climate Accelerator is free to attend. We expect participants to be available to attend all sessions. We also invite the nominating person from the organisation to join the opening workshop and final gathering, in order to support the development of the project or idea.
How to apply
Applications are live from October 23rd 2025 to November 28th 2025.

The application form below asks for a contact for both the nominating organisation and the nominated participant. Please use this downloadable document to prepare your responses collaboratively.

To apply, fill out the form below or fill out the answers on this downloadable word document and email them to us.

If you need this in another format, please contact us.

Applications will close at 5pm on November 28 2025. We will inform you of whether or not your application is successful by Wednesday 10 December 2025.

Applications will be assessed based on the following criteria:
- Eligibility for the programme
- Strength of collaboration and commitment between the participant and the nominating organisation
- Potential to create impact through the project or idea
Creative Climate Accelerator Bradford – Expression of Interest

Comments
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
Section one
Full name of nominee(Required)
Email(Required)
Nominating organisation(Required)
Contact name for nominating organisation(Required)
Contact email for nominating organisation(Required)
Are you based in Bradford?(Required)

Yes

No
Artform (select all relevant)(Required)
Museums and heritage
Visual arts
Performing arts
Dance
Theatre
Music
Festival
Film
Literature
Craft
Cross-artform
Section two: about the nominee
This programme is aimed at supporting people who are underrepresented in the arts and culture. The information in this section is not to be shared with third parties, but will be used to determine eligibility, to ensure we are reaching diverse participants and that we’re able to support participants in a more nuanced and holistic way.
Do any of these categories apply to the person who will be participating in the programme? Please tick all that apply
Disabled person
Young person (aged 24 and under)
Person on low or no income
Person from the Global Majority (also referred to as a “person of colour”)
Older person (65 and over)
LGBTQ+ person
Person from a faith or religious community
A person seeking sanctuary
If there is anything else you would like to share to support your eligibility please include it here
Section three
Nominee biography (500 characters max)(Required)
What made you want to apply to this programme, and what would you like to get out of it? (1,000 characters max)(Required)
How have you engaged with environmental themes or issues in your work to date? (500 characters max)(Required)
Tell us about an idea you are either starting to develop, or have already developed and would like to improve, that connects culture and the environment. Please include what impact you'd like to achieve, who it is aimed at, your timeline, what challenges are you currently facing or anticipating, and how you hope that CCA will support you to make it happen. (500 characters max)(Required)
Which themes does your project relate to? (tick all relevant)(Required)
Community engagement
Nature connection
Local campaigning or policy
Climate action within your organisation
Adapting to the changing climate
Placemaking
Materials and circularity
What support will the nominating organisation offer to the nominee? (tick all relevant)(Required)
Financial support (eg, a dedicated project budget)
Paid time within salaried role
Paid time as a freelancer
Institutional resource (eg, venue space, archives, etc)
Professional development
Mentoring
Other

FAQs

Does the person I nominate need to have a “creative” project idea to apply?

Not at all. You can apply with any idea you would like to work on. This could be related to thinking about production in a new way, rethinking your organisational values to centre climate adaptation, and of course could also be working towards a creative project, or developing ideas for a performance piece. We are looking for projects from all parts of the cultural ecosystem.
Does this need to be a brand-new or fully formed project idea / approach?

No, this programme is designed to support the planning and development of your ideas, even in early stages or something you’ve been working on already. For example, it could be an internal project that needs a kickstart from the training to give it a new lease of life. You could even consider this training as the research and development stage of a bigger project or idea. You might already have funding for a project or you might want to use this programme to develop more climate justice focused ideas for action.
Can we nominate someone we work with as a freelancer or associate, or someone who is not full time at our organisation?

Yes! That would be fine. We ask that you apply with a solid commitment, set out in the criteria above and that you can consider through the project idea, how you collaborate with a meaningful legacy in mind from the outset and share learning in partnership between the nominee and organisation.
Does the individual or the organisation need to demonstrate that we have done projects around sustainability and climate before?

We expect you would have had some level of engagement in climate issues, but we don’t need experts! This programme will explore some of the knowledge and ideas you might need to take your ideas to a new level.

If the organisation or the nominee are approaching as complete beginners, we have plenty of other resources to help you get started.
Any more questions?

Feel free to contact us.

Case Studies

Curious about what’s come out of last year’s Creative Climate Action programme? Explore some inspiring projects from past participants:

A Thames Pilgrimage Movement, Migration and Manchester Barnsley Libraries Lintukoto

Creative Climate Accelerator: Bradford

Creative Climate Accelerator Bradford – Expression of Interest

Section one

Section two: about the nominee

Section three