When people and opinions noticeably drift apart, it’s all the more important to have places where people can meet, engage in dialogue, and ideally find a way to overcome their differences. With “Lokal – Programme for Culture and Engagement”, the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) and the European Cultural Foundation (ECF) want to support cultural organisations in cities and communities with fewer than 100,000 inhabitants. The aim is to establish new partnerships and initiate participative art projects.
The programme is specifically targeted at cultural organisations – for example, art and cultural associations, sociocultural centres, theatres and libraries – which are facing challenges from increasingly antiliberal local developments or find themselves struggling to counter them. The programme enables them to seek new allies, such as local, midsized businesses, sports clubs or nursing homes, to jointly develop artistic projects. In these projects, professional artists will collaborate with residents on location on issues that directly impact their communities. In this way, the programme will help establish new, strong networks in at least 26 cities and towns throughout Germany.
“Lokal” is comprised of an application-based funding programme and accompanying modules. The German Federal Cultural Foundation is responsible for processing applications and managing the 7.5 million-euro funding programme, for which corresponding funding guidelines shall apply (online now). The accompanying modules consist of academies, a European exchange conference, support and consultation services, and a nationwide concluding festival to be organised by the German Federal Cultural Foundation, bpb and ECF from 2025 to 2031.
Katarzyna Wielga-Skolimowska, artistic director of the German Federal Cultural Foundation:
“Sociocultural centres and initiatives, art associations or theatres outside of large cities often find themselves all alone when it comes to promoting cultural engagement. At the same time, as in many other countries in Europe, they’re feeling growing pressure from anti-democratic forces and others. That’s why we’ve invited cultural organisations to participate in the programme ‘Lokal’ and network with new partners. Collaboration in artistic projects can enable a community of responsible citizens to grow at the local level. And such communities are vital to spur engagement and ingenuity for a vibrant local culture.”
Academies and European exchange
The networking projects will be accompanied by academies, which the Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) will be responsible for coordinating. The academies will support small-town cultural organisations to expand their methodological expertise and promote networking among themselves. The academies, which will prospectively take place twice a year at varying locations, are intended to help establish regional partnerships and support the development of artistic-participative projects. According to bpb president Thomas Krüger: “In order to thrive, democracy needs places of negotiation and experts in ambiguity. This is where art and civic education overlap. In close cooperation with the German Federal Cultural Foundation, bpb wants to do its part to facilitate open discourse and strengthen civil society. To this end, we need interdisciplinary alliances that put themselves out there and demonstrate solidarity in increasingly troubled times. In addition to training people in ambiguity with and through art, the programme ‘Lokal' is also about cultivating a democratic resistance.”
Cultural stakeholders in many countries of Europe have already discovered that strong alliances can serve as a bulwark against external pressures. For this reason, cultural organisations participating in “Lokal” will also coordinate their networking activities at the European level, specifically through the “International Exchange Conference” module, organised by the Federal Agency for Civic Education and the European Cultural Foundation. The module will allow “Lokal” participants to meet with cultural institutions in neighbouring European countries like Italy, France and Poland to share their insights and experience, e.g. with dealing with illiberal forces or adopting alternative funding models. According to director of the European Cultural Foundation André Wilkens: “The challenges of polarisation and the disparate cultural demands faced by urban and rural communities are largely the same throughout Europe. At the same time, there are a significant number of new ideas and successful examples of solidarity-based collaboration in many regions outside the large metropolitan hubs, which we can and should share amongst ourselves. In this respect ‘Lokal’ is a cultural contribution to achieving better common solutions and greater societal cohesion in Europe.”
Application and funding
Cultural organisations are invited to submit their applications for “Lokal” funding in digital form by 14 February 2025. All cultural organisations (with or without a physical venue) which offer cultural events on a regular basis are eligible to apply. Applicants are required to submit a short profile substantiating their local commitment to social engagement. This programme will finance networking activities in at least 26 locations with up to 240,000 euros expended over a four year period to help establish local partnerships and enable them to jointly develop artistic projects. For those interested in applying, detailed information is provided in our corresponding funding guidelines: www.kulturstiftung-des-bundes.de/lokal-programme.
All applicants – especially those who have never previously applied for funding through the German Federal Cultural Foundation – are invited to participate in four application workshops at selected locations in Germany. The first workshop will take place on 15 January 2025 in Eberswalde; additional workshops are planned in Gera on 17 January, Ludwigsburg on 21 January and Hildesheim on 23 January 2025.
The Executive Committee of the German Federal Cultural Foundation will announce the selected “Lokal” funding recipients in summer 2025 based on the recommendations of an independent jury of experts.
If you require more information about the programme or would like to request an interview, please feel free to contact us.