Scholarships and Funding
A powerful and balanced creative future for all.
We’ve spent the past 70 years helping to shape careers, foster connections and platform the power of creativity on a global scale.
As we look forward to the next 70 years, we’re focusing on creating opportunities, providing access and nurturing the creative marketing leaders of tomorrow.
Scholarships
LIONS Scholarship
Designed to support the next generation of creative talent, the LIONS scholarship offers a group of people aged 30 or under from around the world a fully funded place on the Cannes Lions Brand Marketers and Creative Academies.
Jodi Harris Scholarship
Honouring a legacy of diversity, opportunity and excellence, the Jodi Harris Scholarship is back for Cannes Lions 2025. This scholarship, open to client-side marketers between the ages of 31 and 36, offers 10 future marketing leaders a fully funded curated programme, in partnership with AB InBev.
Future Lions
Future Lions is AKQA’s annual initiative that celebrates bold and progressive ideas from students all over the world aged 18–25 years old or those with less than 6 months’ industry experience.
Creativity and innovation thrive when everyone has equitable access to opportunities. Through our scholarships and funding, we are opening doors for brilliant minds from all backgrounds to participate in the Festival.
Frank Starling
Chief Diversity Officer
LIONS
Funding
See It Be It
Founded in 2014 by LIONS, See It Be It aims to achieve equal gender representation across the global creative industry. Over the past 11 years, we’ve elevated a worldwide community of more than 150 creatives, driving better representation in the industry and levelling the playing field for women and non-binary people.
The ERA Programme
The Equity, Representation and Accessibility Programme is an initiative created by LIONS, aimed at fostering a diverse and inclusive representation of talent within the creative industry at Cannes Lions 2025. Committed to supporting underrepresented and underserved communities, we’ll allocate up to €2m worth of complimentary passes every year.
Our mission is to advance equitable access for those in the making
- In 2025, we’ll increase our commitment to diverse and inclusive representation at Cannes Lions, providing €2m worth of complimentary passes with a focus on the Global South.
- In 2024, we introduced the Equity, Representation and Accessibility (ERA) Programme, with the aim of allocating up to €1m worth of complimentary passes to foster a diverse and inclusive representation of talent at Cannes Lions.
- In 2023, we opened up the Festival to more than 130 people from groups traditionally underrepresented in the creative industry.
Scholarships and Funding News
Hear from some of the creatives who have been involved in our See It Be It Programme.
“It was such a beautiful experience to be part of this.”
Lex Remalante
Global Creative, The Barn, Arla
Sometimes, getting your foot in the door isn’t enough. As a member of the See It Be It cohort for 2023, Lex Remalante went to Cannes Lions to take the door off its hinges – and invite every participant after her to do the same.
“Create acts, not ads.”
Esosa Osagiede
Deputy Creative Director, Leo Burnett, Nigeria
As part of See It Be It 2023, Esosa Osagiede wanted to bring about real change back home in Nigeria – helping drive progress by encouraging more women not just to get into the creative field, but to reach the top of it.