The Andy Hunter Storytelling Bursary is a fund set up to commemorate the life and work of storyteller, cycling guide and advocate for our natural environment, Andy Hunter, who died in 2015.
The bursary aims to facilitate a continuation and development of Andy’s passion for the earth, the people in it and live oral storytelling, giving other storytellers the resources to progress their own storytelling journey. The bursary is rooted in the ethos of traditional storytelling, seen as a culture of gifting and sharing, and as a creative practice where meanings are co-created by tellers and listeners: an artform that connects people on an equal basis and beyond boundaries.
Since its inception in 2018, the bursary has supported storytellers across Scotland for the past 8 years, nurturing projects rooted in place, sustainability, community and the living tradition of oral storytelling. The fund is provided by Andy’s wife, fellow storyteller Anne Hunter, and is administered by TRACS (Traditional Arts and Culture Scotland).
‘Andy believed in the power of storytelling to facilitate contemplation, attention and deep connections between people, place and the natural world. For me and Jacinta (Andy’s daughter) the bursary engenders a dynamic conversation with Andy’s core principles, facilitating projects and ideas that are always developing and often going beyond anything we, or he, might have imagined. I hope storytellers are encouraged to be audacious in their research and explorations, to share generously and continue to find meaningful ways to bring people together through story and our precious, fragile earth.’ (Anne Hunter)
Andy came to storytelling via Farming, Community Mental Health, Counselling and Social Work incorporating all these facets into his storytelling and was known as a storyteller of sensitivity and imagination, a cycling guide and an advocate for the natural environment. Through his business Storybikes, Andy combined storytelling, sustainable travel and deep attention to place, encouraging people to slow down, listen and connect more meaningfully with landscapes, communities and one another. His work continues to inspire storytellers whose practice values creativity, care, sharing and environmental awareness.
5 bursaries to the value of £1,500 each will be awarded.
Storytellers are invited to submit a project proposal that expresses some aspect of Andy Hunter’s legacy through live, oral storytelling and creative community engagement.
Projects should reflect values central to Andy’s practice, such as connection to place, sustainability, traditional storytelling, shared creativity, care for the natural environment and meaningful exchange between people and communities.
Selected projects should take place between August 2026 – May 2027. Whilst there is no expectation of a live performance being created, projects may include:
Previous supported projects have included storytelling walks for New Scots in Holyrood Park, intergenerational cèilidhs in libraries and schools, projects working with disabled people, foraging and rope-making workshops, nature-connected papercraft and storytelling installations, and sustainable storytelling journeys linking Scotland with the Faroes Islands and Iceland.
Creative practitioners of 18 years of age or over, who are based in Scotland and are rooted in the traditional art form of live, oral storytelling.
Collaboration with other art forms and/or international artists is also welcomed, but the lead applicant must be based in Scotland.
We will provide any required support to make this process as accessible as possible, including verbal or BSL submissions via video. Please address any access requirements to storytellingfestival@tracscotland.org
Any general enquiries should be addressed to storytellingfestival@tracscotland.org in the first instance.
In keeping with Andy Hunter’s values, applicants are encouraged to consider environmental sustainability within the planning and delivery of their project, including travel, materials, community engagement and relationship to place. To find out more about TRACS’ environmental commitments please take a look at our Environmental Sustainability Policy and Action Plan.
TRACS (Traditional Arts & Culture Scotland SC043009) brings together the Traditional Music Forum (SC042867), the Scottish Storytelling Forum (SC020891) and the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland (SC045085). TRACS is based at the Scottish Storytelling Centre, which is a partnership project between the Storytelling Forum and The Church of Scotland (SC011353).
