The Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Residency Program has been a means for exceptional individuals to unlock their creativity and advance groundbreaking work for over six decades. The gift of four weeks of focused, uninterrupted work time sustains and recharges each resident with new inspiration and drive. The experience of engaging in a cross-cultural, cross-disciplinary cohort creates an environment where new pathways for action are seeded and transformational ideas can bloom.
The residency application is divided into the following sections:
As you work on your application, refer to the criteria contained in the Evaluation Rubric to ensure that you are aligned with the program goals.
Please note all applications must be submitted in English to ensure consistency across all submissions during the review process and reduce the risk of translation error or misinterpretation.
You may save your work and return to complete your application later. The application saves automatically, and the status of your application is available to view on your dashboard. For questions, please consult the FAQ’s. For technical support, please email questions@rfbellagio.org.
When you have completed all the required fields, you will be able to submit your application. Once you submit your application, you will no longer be able to make changes. Therefore, before submitting your application please be sure to: 1) confirm all information provided on the Registration Form is correct (select Registration Form from the Submissions menu), and 2) preview your application to view it as it will appear after it’s submitted (select Preview before Submit).
After you submit your application, please note you will not receive email confirmation. To confirm submission, check the Application Status on your dashboard.
Completed applications are due no later than Thursday, April 25, 2024 at 5:00 PM U.S. Eastern Time.
1. Project Title (10 words)
Choose a name that easily identifies and distinguishes your project.
2. Project Description (250 words)
Describe your project, why it’s important, and what it will achieve. This should be a stand-alone statement that does not require any other context or specialized knowledge to understand the project.
3. Breakthrough Potential (250 words)
Why does your project represent a breakthrough?
4. Project Stage
What stage will your project be at the start of your residency?
5. Residency Focus (250 words)
Describe how you will spend the four weeks of the residency. What will you accomplish during that time, and how will that contribute to the overall progress or fruition of your project?
6. Residency Deliverable
Select the option(s) that best describe the specific outcome or deliverable you will accomplish by the end of your residency. (select one or more)
7. Audience (200 words)
Who is the specific audience for this project and what are you trying to get them to do differently?
8. Influence (200 words)
Do you have an existing relationship with this audience and/or access to networks necessary for your project’s success? If so, please describe in detail. If not, please describe how you intend to build those relationships.
9. Pre-Residency (200 words)
Are there project milestones that will be completed prior to the residency?
10. Post-Residency (200 words)
What will be the next steps after the residency?
11. Impact (200 words)
Within one year of the residency, what will be different because of your project? What public benefit will result from your project?
12. Long-Term Impact (200 words)
What will be the long-term impact of your project?
13. Global Region Impacted
Where will your project have the most impact?
14. “Because of Bellagio” Statement (30 words)
Please succinctly summarize the intended outcome or breakthrough that will result from your residency project by completing the following sentence: “Because of this Bellagio residency, ______________________ .”
15. Professional Background (200 words)
Describe your professional background including primary area(s) of expertise and major accomplishments to date.
16. Why You (200 words)
Why are you uniquely suited to do this project?
17. Awards, Honors, Fellowships or Other Residencies (200 words)
Please list any major accolades and year received.
18. Why Now (200 words)
Describe any external events or milestones that are relevant to the timeliness of your project. Why is 2025 an ideal time for your project to be advanced through the residency?
19. Project Fit (200 words)
Describe how your project will be enriched by an interdisciplinary cohort of other residents from around the world.
20. Cohort Fit (200 words)
Curiosity, collegiality, and collaboration are vital to make the most of the interdisciplinary, cross-cultural nature of a Bellagio residency. Please describe an experience with someone very different from you and how it influenced your work.
21. Readiness (200 words)
Describe your ability to step away from both personal and professional responsibilities to participate fully in the four-week residency.
22. Availability
The Bellagio Center will host residencies during the months of September – November 2024 and February – May, July, and September–November 2025. While we do our best to accommodate individual date preferences, the Bellagio Center has limited capacity each month and ultimate dates will be assigned based on Bellagio Center availability. Please indicate your availability to be considered for each residency listed below.
September 2024 Residency (Sept 19-Oct 17)
October 2024 Residency (Oct 22-Nov 19)
February 2025 Residency (approx. Jan 24-Feb 28)
March 2025 Residency (approx. Mar 2-April 1)
April 2025 Residency (approx. April 3-May 2)
May 2025 Residency (approx. May 4-June 3)
July 2025 Residency (approx. July 6-Aug 5)
September 2025 Residency (approx. Aug 22-Sept 21)
October 2025 Residency (approx. Sept 22-Oct 21)
November 2025 Residency (approx. Oct 24-Nov 23)
All applicants must submit a brief video of no more than 90 seconds that introduces you, your project, and why 2025 is the ideal time for a Bellagio residency. Your video should not be professionally produced – an informal video created on a smartphone is expected.
The video is an opportunity to introduce yourself and share your vision in a way that is different from the written application. In creating your video, you may consider including the following elements:
Please note your video must adhere to the following guidelines, or else it will render your application ineligible:
After you record your video, upload it to YouTube, copy the URL, and paste it in the space provided below. If you need instructions on how to create and upload your video, see our Video Instructions. For questions or technical support, please email questions@rfbellagio.org.
23. Paste your video’s full YouTube URL
24. Curriculum Vitae or Resume
Upload a single PDF of your Curriculum Vitae or Resume. This PDF should be no more than five pages total and should not exceed 10MB. Be sure to review our CV Guidelines before uploading your submission.
25. Work Samples
Upload a single PDF that includes two work samples. These should demonstrate your capacity to execute your project. Examples include writing samples, project summaries, images, reports, data visualizations, or links to external video or audio content. Each work sample should include 2-3 sentences describing the sample and why you chose it. Upload a single PDF that includes both samples. This PDF should be no more than five pages total and should not exceed 10MB. Be sure to review our Work Sample Guidelines before uploading your submission.
26. References
If selected for an interview, you will need to obtain two reference letters in August 2024. These references should come from individuals familiar with your work and capable of providing insights into the merit of your project. Details on how to submit reference letters will be provided if you advance to the interview stage. For now, please enter your references' names and contact information below, keeping in mind that they will not be contacted until the interview stage.
Reference #1
First Name
Last Name
Title/Position
Organization
Reference #2
First Name
Last Name
Title/Position
Organization
