Originally imagined as a small community sheltered beneath a canopy and completely surrounded by nature, an inspirational setting at the foot of the Jura Mountains in Switzerland, the Jan Michalski Foundation was created in 2004 by Vera Michalski-Hoffmann in her husband’s memory to perpetuate their common commitment to those who devote themselves to the written word. The Foundation’s mission is to foster literary creation and encourage the practice of reading through a range of initiatives and activities. These include mounting exhibitions and cultural events that have a connection with writing and literature, making a large multilingual library available to the public, awarding an annual prize in world literature, granting financial support, and hosting a writer-in-residence program.
It offers a unique communal venue that is turned outward to the world at large: a place where writers, artists, and the public come together to keep culture alive and ideas flowing.

The Foundation features a group of seven distinctive residential modules that are available for writers and translators invited for residencies of varying lengths of time. Hanging from the openwork “canopy” that runs above the Foundation, these units are called “cabins” and offer ideal conditions to anyone who is looking to start, continue working on, or put the finishing touches to a writing project.
Although open to all kinds of writing and all languages, the residency program does give priority to literary writers and translators. The residencies can be for either individuals or pairs of participants in the case of projects involving more than one discipline. Each year some forty authors from around the world, from emerging writers to seasoned veterans, are able to count on a certain period of time dedicated to a literary project.
A percentage of the residencies are dedicated to nature writing, a form of fiction or creative non-fiction that raises awareness of nature, prepares for a sustainable future, and helps to better understand socio-environmental interconnections and the impact of human actions on nature.