On the Move

European Cultural Foundation: The Culture of Solidarity Fund

On the Move — Fri, 23 Jun 2023 15:17:32 +0000

The new edition of the Culture of Solidarity Fund welcomes European transnational collaborative initiatives that address the theme of just transition and environmental sustainability from a specific cultural angle.

Climate change is the most pressing concern of our time. A successful systemic transition from resource-intense Western lifestyles to more sustainable models requires a radical change in individual and societal values relating to work, the environment, and social justice. However, such a transition must be fair and equitable. Culture plays an important role in this context because it shapes people’s beliefs and behaviours. Cultural and art organisations, community media, activists, and creative sectors have a unique ability to foster solidarity, raise critical questions, and build consensus.

By considering the cultural context and specific values of communities, these actors can develop transition strategies that are fair, equitable, and respectful of the needs and aspirations of all affected, ensuring that no one is left behind.

The call is open to organisations based in Europe and actively engaged in the cultural, creative, or allied sectors. In keeping with ECF’s mission to create solidarity through culture, the Fund specifically welcomes actions in line with the theme of this call that forge European transnational and/or translocal collaborations, and thereby build cross-border alliances of solidarity.

For this edition, ECF are looking for new ideas and experimental initiatives that address just transition from an inherently cultural angle by:

Raising public awareness of the complexities and urgencies of adapting to climate change and other environmental emergencies in a systemic way.
Reinforcing democratic decision-making processes against growing political polarisation by creating a safe environment for open communication, candid exchange and respectful dissent on these issues.
Designing creative solutions for changing ecosystems.
Encouraging holistic working approaches and culture-driven cooperation between public and private stakeholders who are key actors in social and economic transformation.

The Fund has grants available in three amounts:

Up to €10,000.
€10,000 – 20,000.
€20,000 – 30,000.

The project timeline may be up to 12 months, starting mid-November 2023.

Deadline: 11 September 2023

More info and apply: https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/the-culture-of-solidarity-fund-just-transition-is-now-open/

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-culture-solidarity-fund-0

European Cultural Foundation: Call for Curatorial Proposals for the European Pavilion 2024

On the Move — Mon, 19 Jun 2023 08:23:54 +0000

European Cultural Foundation have announced a brand new commissioning grant of up to 500,000 EUR as part of their European Pavilion programme.

With this call, they invite legal entities from all cultural and creative fields in Europe and neighbouring countries to submit an ambitious curatorial proposal that will ensure the visibility, accessibility and positioning of the European Pavilion as a major European cultural event in 2024.

This call seeks proposals that explore, discuss, interpret and visualise Europe in fresh and imaginative ways: cutting-edge concepts and programming that encourages transnational collaborations between creators, thinkers, doers and communities, leading to a large-scale public event in 2024. Through the creative outcomes of these collaborations, the aim is to inspire Europeans to envision a forward-looking Europe, one that contributes to building fairer, more sustainable societies for all.

European Cultural Foundation offer a single commissioning grant of up to EUR 500,000 to cover a maximum of 80% of the total budget for the creative development, curation and production costs of the European Pavilion 2024. The grant will be used at the beneficiary’s discretion to commission cultural producers working in a wide variety of fields of practice in Europe and other parts of the world to contribute to the interdisciplinary programme outlined in the winning proposal.

Deadline: 14 September 2023

More info and apply: https://culturalfoundation.eu/open-calls/call-for-curatorial-proposals-the-european-pavilion-2024/

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-call-curatorial-proposals-european-pavilion-2024

i-Portunus Houses Volumes on Mobility

On the Move — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 10:52:41 +0000

The European Cultural Foundation, MitOst and Kultura Nova Foundation implemented the ‘i-Portunus Houses – Kick-Start a Local Mobility Host Network for Artists & Cultural Professionals in All Creative Europe Countries’ project which included research on mobility in culture carried out by experts from different disciplines, among whom were Tsveta Andreeva, Marta Jalšovec, Ana Žuvela, Petra Rodik, Toni Attard, Vedran Horvat and the Institute for political ecology, with Dea Vidović being the research leader.

As a result of this research, Kultura Nova Foundation has released this publication consisting of 4 interconnected volumes. Each volume of the publication represents one of the research sections: (1) conceptual framework of mobility in culture; (2) the study on mobility in culture from the perspectives of artists, cultural professionals, hosts and funders; (3) an evaluation of i-Portunus Houses mobility grant scheme; and (4) scenario for the future of mobility in culture.

On the Move contributed with an article for Volume 1, ‘Mobility in Culture: Conceptual Frameworks and Approaches’. This piece addresses different aspects of mobility in culture, highlighting current thinking and perspectives and suggesting the main challenges for the future. The article was written by Claire Rosslyn-Wilson in collaboration with Marie Le Sourd with the title: ‘Learning from (im)mobility: Revamped cultural mobility formats and remaining challenges’.

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/resources/library/i-portunus-houses-volumes-mobility

European Cultural Foundation: Culture of Solidarity Fund, Interregional Edition

On the Move — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 13:45:53 +0000

Set up in response to the coronavirus crisis, the Culture of Solidarity Fund supports innovative cultural projects that cross national borders, professional sectors and artistic disciplines and that are eager to find collaborative solutions to systemic problems that limit the prospects of their communities in the wake of the pandemic.

This latest call focuses on communities in parts of Europe which are often at the peripheries of public interest and that contend with the coronavirus crisis within a context of chronic economic decline brought on by deindustrialisation, rural depopulation, and/or changing economic and political forces. And while these regions are not alone in experiencing the increasingly harmful cascade of effects issuing from environmental degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss, they may believe they lack the necessary resources to mitigate them.

While acknowledging its historically specific position, Eastern Germany is a prime example of a region that has proven its resilience, flexibility and capacity to innovate in the face of radically transformative challenges, accumulating a wealth of practical experience and skills that would benefit all Europeans at this critical moment, but in particular those regions similarly affected by systemic transformations.

This call is open to cultural organisations as well as organisations from other fields of work and public institutions that are based and/or active in Eastern Germany or in European regions similarly affected by deindustrialisation, population decline, social dissolution, failing public infrastructure, and ecological crises.
It supports short- or longer-term collaborative actions that address, through cultural work, one or more challenges relating to socio-economic transformation and post-pandemic questions. ECF are looking for project proposals in particular that:

Act locally in one region but in close collaboration and trans-national solidarity with local initiatives in similarly challenged regions across Europe.
Develop local future-oriented cultural solutions to shared systemic challenges.
Align with new interregional models of knowledge and practice exchange that aspire to progressive socio-cultural changes in Europe.

Grants are available in two amounts subject to the number of partners:

€40,000 – two partners.
€60,000 – three partners or more.

The grant term will be up to 12 months, starting on 1 November 2021 and ending on 31 October 2022. Project activities may take place no earlier than the starting date and no later than 31 October 2022.

Deadline: 14 September 2021

More info and apply: https://culturalfoundation.eu/initiatives/culture-of-solidarity-fund

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-culture-solidarity-fund-interregional-edition

European Cultural Foundation: Head of Communications (Netherlands)

On the Move — Tue, 03 Aug 2021 04:00:00 +0000

The European Cultural Foundation is seeking a Head of Communications.

As Head of Department, you will be a member of the Management Team, reporting to the Director. You will also be member of ECF’s Initiative on Sustainable Finance and Fund Development. You will lead, manage and supervise a team of four to five (two of which you will be able to recruit). You are a strategic communications expert but can lead a team hands-on. You are a sparring partner for your colleagues in the MT and the Director.

ECF’s ambition is to be a leading voice on the role of culture in building a better Europe and in their focus areas in particular. Their voice and language must be accessible to a wide audience across all communication channels, internal and external, avoiding jargon and buzzwords. Their way of communicating must be attractive to diverse audiences in Europe: from grantees to potential funders, from programme partners to European decision-makers.

In particular you will:

Set and guide the communications strategy to articulate and promote ECF’s work and thematic areas and follow-through its implementation.
Set and guide the communications strategy to attract partners and funders to ECF’s work.
Know how to navigate in a complex environment between different stakeholders, interest groups, partners and colleagues with different cultural backgrounds.
Build and further develop a solid media profile for ECF in Europe.
Represent the organisation in external contacts and act as spokesperson where applicable.
Advise and support the other departments from your communications point of view.
Work alongside your team in developing, coordinating, implementing, assessing and evaluating activities.

ECF offers:

An opportunity to create, thrive, develop in an international team, in one of the most interesting cities in Europe, Amsterdam.
The chance to join Europe’s only European cultural foundation.
Being part of an organisation with an impressive legacy but which is not stuck in the past.
Flexible work arrangements with a combination of analogue and digital work, in Amsterdam and Europe.
Fun and joy which comes from working inside a diverse team on things that matter.
Salary ranging from 4500-5800 EUR gross per month, on a full-time basis with 13th month, 8% holiday allowance and benefits package.
A contract for 32 - 37.5 hours a week, for 1 year with a view to extending.

Deadline: 19 September 2021

More info and apply: https://www.colourfulpeople.nl/vacatures/vacature-head-of-communications-at-european-cultural-foundation-481278-11.html

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-head-communications-netherlands

European Cultural Foundation > Second round of Culture of Solidarity Fund

On the Move — Sun, 21 Jun 2020 17:34:15 +0000

The European Cultural Foundation invites you to apply for the second round of the European Culture of Solidarity Fund. Set up at the beginning of the pandemic crisis, the fund continues to support imaginative cultural initiatives that reinforce European solidarity and the idea of Europe as a shared public space.

The Fund continues to support imaginative cultural initiatives - big or small - that reinforce solidarity and deal with the aftermaths of the pandemic for European societies.

This second round also looks to re-unite Europe and its people in solidarity through supporting local cultural players in building alliances across nations, borders and differences with a broader European idea in mind. It specifically welcomes proposals that grow immediate crisis responses into more future- oriented solutions and extend from local levels to building cross-national alliances and initiatives of pan-European solidarity.

The Fund is open to individuals, collectives and organisations from all sectors and civil society at large and supports short- or long-term actions that either/or:

» preserve and expand a European Culture of Solidarity as the key element for keeping Europe an open and shared public space for everyone;

» envision the future of making cultural experiences and people-to-people interaction possible across European borders after inward-looking times of social distancing and national crisis response;

» imagine, tell stories and prepare the ground for a culture-driven revival of a united Europe during and after the crisis.

The Fund has grants available in three amounts:

Small: up to €12.500
Medium: €12.500 – 25.000
Large: €25.000 – 40.000

line co-working and communication tools, production costs, but also expert fees and staff costs.

Check the list of first round grantees.

Deadline: 14 July 2020

More info and apply: https://www.culturalfoundation.eu/library/second-round-culture-of-solidarity-fund-is-announced

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-second-round-culture-solidarity-fund

European Cultural Foundation > Culture of Solidarity Fund

On the Move — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 16:15:41 +0000

The Fund supports imaginative cultural initiatives that, in the midst of the global pandemic crisis reinforce European solidarity and the idea of Europe as a shared public space.

Facing the Coronavirus crisis could be a strong European moment. A moment when people understand how important it is to have friends who support each other, a moment of sharing vital information, expertise and supplies, a moment when you realise how a fundamental crisis can be managed much better through cooperation and solidarity.

But so far this has not been the European moment we had envisioned. National leaders have taken the initiative and do whatever it takes to protect their citizens against the virus. Their approaches might differ in terms of public health responses, but they are surprisingly consistent when it comes to protecting the national interest. Where is Europe and the EU? Where is the shared European interest?

Over the last 75 years, Europe has managed to reinvent itself as a collaborative power, a sharing society. This has served us Europeans well. We cannot afford a rollback. We need to do whatever it takes to keep the sentiment of European cooperation and solidarity intact.

In the past weeks, many emergency funds for the cultural and creative sector have been announced at national, regional or local levels and funding opportunities by the EU for the arts and culture are also underway. But so far public funding in Eastern and Southern Europe has been scarce compared to Western and Northern Europe, and we are yet to see support mechanisms for creative initiatives that strengthen a pan-European culture of solidarity.

There is still hope. All around the globe we see people reaching out to each other, practicing small and often imaginative human gestures of everyday solidarity, uniting us, across balconies, social networks, cities and countries. It is exactly this culture of solidarity we ought to nourish during this global crisis and beyond. This can be a European moment of solidarity, a moment of citizens and communities with creativity, imagination, caring for and supporting each other.

The Fund - set up in partnership with other foundations - is looking to support imaginative cultural initiatives - big or small - that reinforce solidarity and the notion of Europe as a shared public space in response to the current crisis and its aftershocks.

The Fund has grants available in three amounts:

€5.000 – 15.000 (5 - 10 awarded projects per submission round)
€15.000 – 30.000 (2 - 3 awarded projects per submission round)
€30.000 – 50.000 (1 - 2 awarded projects per submission round)

Grants can be used for financing a wide range of activities ranging from seed money for entirely new initiatives to (co-)funding for scaling up already existing ideas to European level. They can cover material costs, office costs, online co-working and communication tools, production costs, but also expert fees and staff costs.

Deadline: 27 April 2020

More info and apply: https://www.culturalfoundation.eu/culture-of-solidarity?fbclid=IwAR31OMKCLX-nPpjZ0ug2HcDq-YMVisCCoDpsOnrFkYjCFm9gNszVTujUKCg

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-culture-solidarity-fund

European Cultural Foundation > Spaces for Solidarity

On the Move — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 13:01:07 +0000

The European Cultural Foundation, Rijeka 2020 European Capital of Culture, Krytyka Polityczna, and ZEMOS98 are inviting applications for participation in Culture Lab Europe, which will take place 16-18 April 2020 in Rijeka, Croatia.

The organisers are looking for cultural activists and mediators who are:

Engaged in initiatives that create spaces for solidarity and public debate, and who are keen on European collaboration.
Engaged in non-partisan initiatives that provide digital or physical space for citizens to share ideas and engage in debate.
Well connected to relevant (local) communities and stakeholders such as decision makers, educational institutions or media.
Committed to sharing their knowledge and experience and working on collaborative projects with peers from across Europe.

Culture Lab Europe is a unique opportunity to:

Be inspired by initiatives tackling the pressures facing European societies.
Build connections with other cultural change makers across Europe.
Develop initiatives contributing to a European space for public debate, fostering solidarity amongst people living across our continent.
Meet funders and be part of their initiative for European public space.

Participation in Culture Lab Europe is free of charge. Travel, accommodation and meals are covered.

Deadline: 31 January 2020

More info and apply: https://www.culturalfoundation.eu/culture-lab-europe

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/news/european-cultural-foundation-spaces-solidarity

10 years of STEP Beyond Travel Grants

On the Move — Sun, 29 Jun 2014 15:59:26 +0000

Since 2003, the European Cultural Foundation has supported more than 1,800 trips across 59 countries through the STEP Beyond Travel Grants programme. The programme’s tenth anniversary provided a chance for us to look back at our achievements, but also to start looking ahead.

ECF has prepared the publication “10 Years STEP Beyond Travel Grants (2003-2013)” offering an overview of the past, present and future of ECF’s flagship mobility grants programme, as well as giving a voice to some of the cultural change-makers involved.

Join us by delving into these pages, stepping beyond the borders of today’s society and considering the challenges, opportunities and dilemmas for ECF’s STEP Beyond programme and where it may lead us ten years from now.

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/resources/library/10-years-step-beyond-travel-grants

The Dwarfing of Europe?

On the Move — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 14:11:33 +0000

In this first of the series Dwarfing of Europe? publication, we turn to our neighbours for an honest view of Europe from the outside in order to boost and broaden the debate on Europe by focusing on culture. Their insights can help us craft new narratives for Europe. The contributors to this first volume of The Dwarfing of Europe? include: Shreela Ghosh, Basma El Husseiny, Peter Vermeersch and Iryna Vidanava.

The book is dedicated to Odile Chenal, in recognition of more than 23 years of loyal and devoted service to ECF – with gratitude for her unwavering commitment to Europe and to culture. Odile is retiring from ECF in 2013.

Original post on the website of On the Move: https://on-the-move.org/resources/library/dwarfing-europe