Previous recipients • Copyright Licensing

Previous recipients

Congratulations to all past and present successful Cultural Fund recipients of our grants and awards.

We're proud of the contribution that researchers, writers, authors and publishers make to this country. Congratulations to all of the successful recipients of our grants and awards, and thank you to everyone who have submitted applications. Take a look to see who the successful recipients were over the last few years.

CLNZ/NZSA Writers' Award

2023 - Tom Doig for his project with the working title 'We Are All Preppers Now: Kiwis Making Plans for the End of the World' read more here

2022 - Iona Winter
for her project A counter of moons - read more here

2021 - Jade Kake (Ngāpuhi, Te Whakatōhea, Te Arawa)
for her project on the legacy of Professor Rewi Thompson (1953-2017; Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Raukawa) - read more here

2020 - Nick Bollinger
for his project Revolutions Per Minute: The Counterculture in New Zealand 1960-1975 - read more here

2019 - Rebecca Macfie
for her biography of Helen Kelly - read more here

2018 - Nic Low (Ngāi Tahu)
for his project Uprising - read more here

2017 - Ben Schrader
for his project Won and Lost: Saving New Zealand's Built Heritage 1885-2016 - read more here

2016 - Neville Peat
for his project The Invading Sea - read more here

CLNZ/NZSA Research Grants

2023 - Michael O'Leary, Hana Tapiata, Saige England and Trevor Bentley - read more here

2022 - Maria Samuela, Bonnie Etherington, Sylvan Thomson and Emma Espiner (Ngāti Tukorehe, Ngāti Porou) - read more here

2021 - Lauren Keenan (Te Ātiawa ki Taranaki), Anthony Green, Lillian Duval and Bonnie Maihi - read more here

2020 - Fraser Smith, Vasanti Unka, Elizabeth Cox and Wystan Curnow - read more here

2019 - Giovanna Fenster, Philip Simpson, Ghazaleh Golbakhsh and Joanne Drayton (Stout) - read more here

2018 - Jock Phillips, Philip Matthews, Pip Desmond and Mike Dickinson (Stout) - read more here

2017 - Jamie Robins, Phil Garnock-Jones, Pip Hall and Michalia Arathimos - read more here

2016 - Susy Pointon, Jared Davidson, Grace Millar and Aaron Fox - read more here

2015 - Heather McQuillan, Paul Moon, Philippa Werry and Paul Bensemann - read more here

Contestable Fund Grants

2023 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Moa Press
    Airana Ngarewa short story collection (title TBC) $3500
  • Anne Bennett-Eustace
    Arthurs Memoirs and Legacy $6000
  • Drama NZ Mahi Whakaari o Aotearoa
    Resources for drama in education $8000
  • New Zealand Railway & Locomotive Society Incorporated
    New Zealand Railways at Night $5,000
  • One Tree House Limited
    Hongi’s Hīkoi: A Trio of Travellers - two graphic novels $10,000
  • Forest & Bird
    Bird of the Year: New Zealand's love affair with native birds $5000
  • Small Press Fest
    Small Press Fest $2500
  • Mairātea Mohi, Craccum Magazine
    Craccum Magazine $5000
  • Mani Malaeulu, Empowerment Training Ltd
    Dear Uso $7000
  • Pacific Islanders in Publishing
    Pacific Islanders in Publishing $4000
  • Akaroa Community Arts Council (ACAC)
    Readers and Writers Akaroa fellowships $5000
  • Oratia Media
    New Zealand Place Names book and online collaboration $4500
  • Dunedin Writers and Readers Festival
    Dunedin Writers & Readers Festival podcasts (2023) $2490
  • Shana Chandra
    Banjara $2000
  • Beyond Reality Media
    The Irrepressible Duncans Universe $5000

Read more here about the successful 2023 recipients.

2022 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Clean Slate Press Ltd
    Sammy Football Trilogy $5,000
  • Mila's Books
    Mila’s My Pasifika Series Project $10,000
  • Damien Levi, Te Ātihaunui-a-Pāpārangi
    Bad Apple Poetry Collection $7,000
  • Kelly Ana Morey
    Soft Bones $8,000
  • Pacific Kids' Learning Ltd
  • Pacific Bilingual Kids Books $7,000
  • Rat World Magazine
    Rat World Magazine $5,500
  • Saufo'i Press
    Moana Pacific poetry publishing $4,000
  • School for Young Writers
    Write 60 Then and Now and Teacher Resource $5,500
  • Sophie Merkens
    Research and development for New Zealand non-fiction book (sequel to ‘Grow') $6,000
  • Trish Harris
    About Us: 25 adventurers, artists and activists who link to Aotearoa’s Deaf and disability history $10,000
  • Wildling Books
    Healthy Ways to Release Emotions $5,000

Read more here about the successful 2022 recipients

2021 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANTS RECIPIENTS

  • Ashlee Sturme
    Inhale - a collection of writing from Maori Wahine $9,800
  • Flying Start Books
    Kowhai Adaptations - Te Reo Māori Red Rocket Readers $6,960
  • Jacqueline Leckie
    Land of the Old Black Cloud: A Cultural History of Mental Depression in Aotearoa $8,200
  • Kotahi Rau Pukapuka Trust
    He Puna Kupu mō Hare Pota - Vocabulary Creation for Harry Potter in te reo Māori $12,640
  • Little Mouse Limited
    Ōhinemutu - A bilingual, short story $5,000
  • Metro Media Group Ltd
    Metro Book Reviews in Broadsheet format $7,000
  • NANSEN Magazine
    Migration magazine making our third issue in Aotearoa $5,500
  • NZ Booklovers
    Awards 2022 - fiction, lifestyle and children’s picture books $2,000
  • OneTree House Ltd
    Bilingual and te reo Māori publishing programme $7,000
  • Stacey Morrison and Penguin Random House New Zealand
    Māori at Home audio edition $4,000
  • Storylines Children’s Literature Charitable Trust Te Whare Waituhi o Aotearoa
    The Storylines National Children’s Literature Authors and Illustrators Hui $6,900

Read more here about the successful 2021 recipients

2020 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANTS RECIPIENTS

  • Mila's My Aganu'u
    Series Dahlia Malaeulu (Mila's Books) - $9,000
  • Dunedin Writers and Readers Festival podcasts (2021)
    Dunedin Writers and Readers Festival - $4,900
  • Token Cripple
    Henrietta Bollinger - $8,000
  • Ringawera (working title)
    Kārena and Kasey Bird - $8,000
  • Our Backyard Children's Picture Books
    Marie Connolly and Jenny Lee - $7,500
  • Kāwai: a saga from the uttermost end of the earth
    Monty Soutar - $8,000
  • Better off Read - Elements 2021
    Pip Adam, Better off Read Podcast - $5,000
  • Red Rocket Readers Te Reo Māori Adaptations
    Flying Start Books - $8,000
  • Comic Series commissioned by Toby Morris (working title)
    The Spinoff - $8,500
  • Connectors Digital - A Remote Learning Resource
    Global Education Systems - $8,000

Read more here about the successful 2020 recipients

2020 SPECIAL ROUND OF CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • NZ Children's & Young Adult Book Awards, Books Alive online author events and virtual story times
    LIANZA Te Rau Herenga o Aotearoa - $10,000
  • Out of the Woods e-comic
    Educational Resources Ltd - $12,000
  • Young Voices : Virus!
    Write On School for Young Writers - $12,000
  • #NZSAConnects: i)NZSALive ii)NZSAwebWorkshops iii) NZSAWritersRead
    NZ Society of Authors $7,500
  • PukapukaHub Podcast
    The Coalition for Books - $5,000
  • Who We Are Now?
    The Pantograph Punch - $12,000
  • Auckland Writers Festival Winter Series
    Auckland Writers' and Readers' Festival Charitable Trust - $3,000
  • Meantime
    Majella Cullinane - $10,000
  • Cenotaph Stories: Contemporary Reflections
    Auckland War Memorial Museum - $5,000
  • This Is Us - the diaspora in lockdown
    Pete Carter - $12,000
  • Children's picture book, with working title 'Enough'
    Sarah Johnson - $10,000
  • Graphic Artists Book (working title only)
    Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu - $ 15,000
  • ReadingRoom: Portrait of the Author
    Newsroom NZ Ltd - $6,500

Read more here about the successful 2020 recipients

2019 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Dee Publications $5,000
  • Publishers Association of New Zealand $9,000
  • Kiwa Digital $10,000
  • Auckland University Press $6,000
  • Little Island Press Ltd $12,500
  • Wildling Books $2,000
  • Peter Alsop $6,500
  • Going West Books and Writers' Festival Trust $5,000
  • Flying Start Books $10,000
  • Code Education $10,000
  • Wendy Pye Publishing $5,000
  • The Coalition of Books $4,000
  • Counter Journal $3,000

Read more here about the successful 2019 recipients

2018 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Dunedin Writers Festival $2,410
  • Academy of New Zealand Literature $10,000
  • Clean Slate Press $10,000
  • Graeme Lay $3,000
  • Lesley Smith $10,000
  • Lift Education $7,500
  • One Tree House $5,000
  • Lost Property.org.nz $3,700
  • Audiobooks NZ $10,000

Read more here about the successful 2018 recipients

2017 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Oratia Media $5,000
  • Gecko Press $5,000
  • Academy of New Zealand Literature $10,000
  • The Writing Bug Ltd $5,000
  • The Sapling $15,000
  • Toitoi Media Ltd $10,000
  • Essential Resources $15,000
  • Gillian Candler $10,000

Read more here about the successful 2017 recipients

2016 CONTESTABLE FUND GRANT RECIPIENTS

  • Toitoi Media Limited $7,600
  • Huia (NZ) Ltd $10,000
  • Lesley Smith $10,000
  • NZ Book Awards Trust $20,000
  • Prue Langbein $8,000
  • Clean Slate Press Ltd $8000
  • Zak Waipara $5000
  • Flying Start Books Ltd $5000

Read more here about the successful 2016 recipients

CLNZ Creative Writing Tertiary Scholarships

2024

  • Amelia Reynolds Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington

2023

  • Martain Ravn – Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington
  • Gavin Strawhan – The University of Auckland Waipapa Taumata Rau

2022

  • Katie Newton – The University of Auckland
  • Cheyenne Thomas – Auckland University of Technology
  • Ronella Nadia Nafanua Purcell – Victoria University of Wellington

2021

  • Clare Travaglia – The University of Auckland
  • Heather-Joan Eardley – Auckland University of Technology
  • Isaac Martyn – Victoria University of Wellington

2020

  • Rostislava Pankova-Karadjova – The University of Auckland
  • Madeleine Williamson – Auckland University of Technology
  • Kōtuku Nuttall – Victoria University of Wellington

2019

  • Shelley Burne-Field – The University of Auckland
  • Jessie Puru – Auckland University of Technology
  • Catarina de Peters Leitao – Victoria University of Wellington

2018

  • Carolyn Cossey – The University of Auckland
  • Cassandra Barnett – Victoria University of Wellington

2017

  • Amelia Louise Langford – The University of Auckland

Previous recipients

Previous recipients

Congratulations to all past and present successful Cultural Fund recipients of our grants and awards.
Learn more
Hit enter to submit