Community organisations who could benefit from funding through the second round of Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) Multicultural Festivals and Events Grants must get their applications in before Friday 13 September 2013.

VMC Chairperson Chin Tan said the grants would go toward festivals and events that give people opportunities to celebrate the different cultures and faiths that make Victoria such a great place.

“Community festivals and events help bring people together to share cultures in a celebration of connection, diversity and community,” Mr Tan said.

“This round of Multicultural Festivals and Events grants will give priority to festivals and events that complement the Cultural Diversity Week celebrations happening around Victoria from 15 to 23 March next year.

“I encourage any community or school group that is thinking of hosting a festival or event that will help build diverse and harmonious communities to consider making an application,” he said.

Mr Tan said the Multicultural Festivals and Events Grants were incredibly popular, with more than $700,000 shared by 277 community groups in the first round of funding for 2013-14

“We received more than $2 million in applications for events being held in the latter part of 2013, and we expect the interest to be even higher for grants to help with events being held in the first half of 2014,” he said.

For more information about grants available from VMC, or to apply for a Multicultural Festivals and Events Grant, visit www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/grants