Migration in Changing Climates Fellowship

A PLAYA + PRAx + Spring Creek Project Fellowship

PLAYA, PRAx and Spring Creek Project are partnering to offer Migration in Changing Climates, a new interdisciplinary fellowship.

This fellowship invites applicants working in writing, ethics and philosophy, visual art, performing arts, sound and multidisciplinary genres to propose projects that engage migration as an ecological, cultural, ethical and imaginative force reshaping where and how life can move. Fellowship projects will explore ecologies of migration in the Pacific Northwest and Great Basin, including human and other-than-human lives. The fellowship will begin with an orientation at PLAYA, with a case study of migration in the high desert of Lake County, Oregon.  

PLAYA is located on the Pacific Flyway, a critical migratory corridor where millions of birds depend on a chain of desert lakes, wetlands, scrub and uplands for survival. From American Avocet to Wilson's Phalarope to Pronghorn and Mule Deer, here along the northern edge of the Great Basin, movement has been a constant. Over the past 70 years, shrinking wetlands, intensifying drought, habitat fragmentation and rising temperatures have upset an age-old balance. Migratory corridors used for millennia have been disrupted, leading to diminished resources and increased challenges.

The year-long program will bring eight selected fellows together to develop creative projects that engage with the living dynamics of migration — of birds, mammals, plants, and/or people — across landscapes undergoing rapid change in the Pacific Northwest and Great Basin. We seek projects that are attentive to place, grounded in observation and inquiry, and open to evoking dialogue — work that can hold complexity, uncertainty, and wonder in a world on the move. We invite fellows to explore questions such as: 

• How do migratory beings navigate changing climates, fragmented landscapes, and disrupted habitats?
• What happens when traditional migration routes no longer function?
• What are the ethical, cultural, and emotional dimensions of migration?
• What might migration by other animals, plants, fungi and microorganisms teach humans about resilience, vulnerability, and belonging?
• What responsibilities arise when human-driven changes force displacement across species? 

As a cohort, during the four-night (October 1-5, 2026) orientation and residency at PLAYA on the edge of Summer Lake, fellows will connect with scientists and land stewards who have expertise in migration. We will come together for field excursions, expert presentations, and informal conversations over dinner to share knowledge, perspectives, and inspiration.

After the program orientation, fellows will schedule an individual residency at PLAYA to deepen and expand their creative work about migration over the next year. With the help of PRAx and PLAYA, fellows will also connect with research and researchers that might inform this work. The fellowship will culminate with public programming at PRAx at Oregon State University, where work will be presented between September 2028 and June 2028. 

PLAYA, Spring Creek Project and PRAx bring a tradition of integrating the arts, humanities, and sciences to illuminate environmental change and our ethical relationship to the natural world. Together these programs offer a setting where creative inquiry, ecological knowledge, and lived experience can meet — supporting work that helps us imagine new ways of understanding migration, not only as a biological process, but as a shared story of survival, adaptation, and interdependence.

Residency Details

Please review the PLAYA 2026 Know Before You Go Handbook to determine if a residency at PLAYA is for you.

Eligibility

The Migration in Changing Climates Fellowship is open to both established and emerging artists working in any medium or genre (visual, music/sound, literary, journalism, video, interdisciplinary, new media, etc.). A work trajectory that addresses environmental issues or involves place-based inquiry is expected.

Individual and collaborative applications of up to two people are welcome. If applying collaboratively, each person in the collaboration must apply individually and include the name of the collaborator in the space provided. Applicants must be able to participate in the full five-day cohort residency at PLAYA (October 1–5, 2026) and commit to engaging in the year-long fellowship program (October 2026-November 2027). Applicants must be based in the U.S. and at least 18 years old at the time of application.

We encourage applications from individuals whose work is informed by lived experience, cultural knowledge, or long-term engagement with place, including Indigenous, rural, and historically underrepresented communities.

Residency Offerings

Selected fellows will receive:

• A four-night cohort residency and orientation at PLAYA. Lodging and meals provided.
• An additional individual residency at PLAYA, during one of PLAYA’s Art/Sci Awarded Residency dates. Typical residencies are at least 11 nights from January-March, July - August or November. During these individual residencies, PLAYA provides private living and studio spaces, one group meal per week, and access to the surrounding high desert landscape. 
• An honorarium of $3,000 per fellow, which may be used to cover travel costs to PLAYA for the initial cohort residency, a subsequent individual residency, and travel to Corvallis for the exhibition opening event.
• Opportunities to engage with scientists, land stewards, and migration experts.
• Professional documentation of projects.
• A culminating opportunity for public presentation at PRAx at Oregon State University (e.g., an exhibition, a reading, or a performance).
• Additional funding for shipping artwork to PRAx for an exhibition if needed.

Terms & expectations

Fellows are expected to:

• Participate fully in the four-night cohort residency at PLAYA.
• Actively engage with the cohort, staff, and invited collaborators in a spirit of inquiry and respect.
• Develop a creative project related to migration in a changing climate over the fellowship year.
• Schedule and complete individual residency time at PLAYA within the fellowship period, and per PLAYA’s Art/Sci Awarded Residency schedule.
• Participate in a public program, exhibition, or presentation at PRAx between September 2028 and June 2029.
• Acknowledge PLAYA, Spring Creek Project and PRAx in public presentations and publications related to the fellowship.

Program & Application Dates

• Application deadline: May 15, 2026
• References deadline: May 31, 2026
• Notification of status:  By July 1, 2026
• Opening retreat at PLAYA: October 1-5, 2026
• Residency period: October 2026 – November 2027
• Individual PLAYA Residency: Residencies can be scheduled from January-March, July - August and November. Please plan to stay for at least 11 nights. 
• Public presentation at PRAx: Between September 2028 and June 2029 (Exact dates TBD)

How to Apply

Applications are due May 15, 2026. The deadline for the two required reference forms is May 31. References should be selected who can speak to your ability to function in a remote, self-directed environment and in community with others. If you have questions about the application process, contact residencies.prax@oregonstate.edu. 

Review & Selection

A diverse panel composed of artists, writers, scientists and arts professionals will evaluate applications based on these criteria:

• Quality and strength of work samples
• Connection of previous work with the missions of PLAYA and the Spring Creek Project through demonstrated environmental focus or place-based inquiry.
• Likelihood that the fellowship will result in work that engages and evokes dialogue about migration.

Final selections will reflect a balance of disciplines, perspectives, and approaches.