The State of the Map Organizing Committee provides a second part of the Travel Grant Programme (TGP) to facilitate accessibility at the global SotM 2026 Conference, which will happen in Paris, France, August 28-30.
The call for applications to the Travel Grant Programme will be open until June 21st, 12:00 UTC.
It is fundamental to read all the information on this page before submitting an application.
This section sets out the benefits of a Travel Grant to attend SotM 2026 and the process and criteria by which applicants will be selected. The TGP is administered by the State of the Map Organizing Committee.
The Travel Grant will include a full conference ticket and a lump-sum contribution towards travel, accommodation and other expenses.
There will be two (2) different sizes of travel grants available:
| Category | Grant Size | Likely Used For | Expected number of winners |
|---|---|---|---|
| B2 | free ticket | Applicants from France | 15 |
| C2 | free ticket + £ 300 | Applicants from Schengen Area and Common Travel Area | 8 |
The size and number of grants may be adjusted at the discretion of the Organizing Committee, depending upon the level of funding raised and the number of applications received. Applicants will only be able to apply for one size of travel grant, and they should apply for the grant depending on their country of residence. The World Bank rating is available online.
Anyone applying for more than one grant will be excluded from the application process.
Submissions are expected to reflect the applicant’s personal and direct experience within the OpenStreetMap project. The use of generative AI tools to write or substantially edit these sections is strongly discouraged. Overly generic, self-promotional, or marketing-style narratives may be penalised.
In order to guarantee a transparent and fair allocation of funds, the travel grant programme uses a points system for ranking applications. Points are awarded if applicants match specific criteria. After the application phase is over, all applicants are ranked by points, and the applicants with the most points will receive funding.
Please note that the travel grant programme aims to enhance diversity at the conference. We might reserve a few programme spots for people with unique and outstanding applications. However, most programme spots will solely be determined by the point ranking.
To ensure the participation of OSM contributors who have not attended any in-person SOTM conference, the in-person Travel Grant winners of the previous three SOTM (SOTM 2025 Manila, SOTM 2024 Nairobi and SOTM 2022 Firenze) will not be eligible for this Travel Grant.
Applicants receive points for the following criteria:
In order to create a more diverse community, women and applicants from other underrepresented groups will receive 1 points. The minority criteria will be considered with respect to the other candidates of the same category.
Students, including PhD students, receive 1 point. You may be asked to provide evidence of enrollment.
Applicants who attend SotM for the first time receive 1 point.
The expected cost amount requested is to be indicated in pounds sterling (£). Applications without an explicit request for the amount required will not be considered. The minimum between the expected cost and the grant size based on the residence country will be assigned.
Details of their past contributions to OpenStreetMap projects or community activities: up to a total of 4 points. Up to 2 points for mapping activities based on your OpenStreetMap username and up to 2 points for other contributions to the project as you will describe.
Present the most valuable experience, mapping activities, or community moment that describes the travel grant experience in the OpenStreetMap world. This is not the call for participation; the call will be open, and there will be the possibility to submit talks and workshops. So, this is not an instrument to present talks; you are invited to participate in the call for talks and workshops if you would like to present your activities.
Please provide a short abstract about what you would like to present, with a maximum length of 100 words.
No points; the abstract will be used as a discriminant for the final decision.
The travel grant winners will be asked to volunteer for a time proportional to 1/3 or less of the conference length, depending on the number of other volunteers. Indicate the roles that you are confident to do: Room Assistant, Registration and Infodesk, Session Assistant, Venueless Assistant (only for remote grants). For more detailed info on the roles, see the wiki pages of volunteers for SotM 2025. No points.
You must be able to fund the direct costs of your travel to SotM and other documents (for example, vaccinations). Successful applicants will receive a conference pass and become eligible for reimbursement of expenses up to the limit of the travel grant when they check in at the conference registration desk. Reimbursement of expenses will be by electronic means (details to be advised).
The travel grant amount will NOT be provided in advance. The applicants should be able to cover the costs on their own.
If you wish to be considered for a SotM travel grant please fill out the application form.
All data will be held confidential and only used for assessing TGP applications. Please ensure that the email address that you provide is regularly monitored, as the selection committee may wish to seek clarification of responses. If no replies have been provided to requests via mail for the Travel Grant Committee within 5 days, the Travel Grant will be removed from you and assigned to the next applicants in the ranking.
Applications must be received by the June 21st at 12:00 UTC.
The selection committee will aim to notify recipients of grants by the 5th of July.
The travel grant programme is funded through the State of the Map Sponsors.