European Cultural Foundation

27/05/2026

Are our digital spaces truly democratic?

Once, the internet was seen as a great promise for democracy. Today, it has become one of its greatest threats, argues Jantien Borsboom, Director of PublicSpaces ( ).

Welcome back to , our recurring series bringing to life the voices from our annual magazine.

👉 Swipe through to explore why Big Tech is undermining our democracy, what a truly public internet could look like, and how we can reclaim our digital sovereignty.

📖 Read the full interview" Download Common Ground magazine for free via the link in our bio! ✨

Inspired to dive deeper? is hosting their annual conference in Amsterdam from 4 to 6 June. Head over to their page for more details and tickets!

19/05/2026

The partners congratulated former MEP Zoltan Tarr with his appointment as Minister for Social Relations and Culture in Hungary's new government.

"We had the pleasure to meet and hear your interventions at our two last Cultural Deal for Europe annual policy conversations in Brussels (2026 and 2025), and trust that your understanding of the strategic nature of culture will help to take it out of the margins - not only in rhetorics but also at domestic and EU level."

18/05/2026

Can art dismantle lifelong prejudice?

When Jasmina Ibrahimovic was 5, she was warned to stay away from the local Roma community. But a theatre project run by her father changed everything. Today, that same conviction drives her work as a fellow of the Alliance for Socially Engaged Arts .

We are thrilled to launch hashtag , a recurring series highlighting the incredible changemakers featured in our 2026 annual magazine who are actively reshaping Europe through culture from the ground up.

📍 Featured Story: Jasmina Ibrahimović (Creative Director, Rotterdams Wijktheater & ASEA Fellow)

In her interview with Olivia Busi, Jasmina shares 3 vital lessons that resonate deeply with our mission to foster a shared European sentiment:

➡️ True engagement isn’t about dragging people into our institutional cultural bubbles. It’s about consistently showing up in neighborhoods and building long-term trust.
➡️ There is a massive surge of young artists wanting to do community work, but almost no formal training structures exist. We must build systems to support them.
➡️ Looking at Europe through the eyes of those outside the EU who aspire to join helps us re-articulate the fragile values—like democracy and free speech—that we often take for granted.

Socially engaged practitioners are among the most resilient drivers of social progress in Europe. It’s time to move creative collaboration from the margins of the arts sector to its absolute core.

📖 Read Jasmina’s full story: Download our Common Ground magazine for free and turn to page 19. 👇

https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/common-ground-2026/
Follow the hashtag hashtag to catch our upcoming features!

17/05/2026

Last week, we gathered at Athenaeum Boekhandels to celebrate the launch of Common Ground 2026. 📖✨

This 6th edition is a testament to the power of cultural practice in an age of radical uncertainty. Whether it’s Nicu Popescu sharing firsthand lessons on navigating disinformation in Moldova, or photo essays capturing the "bittersweet life" in Transnistria, we are looking for Europe in the places and relationships that truly shape it. We also dive into our own history—revealing ECF’s role in creating the programme and why we are now fighting for a Cultural Deal for Europe.

A massive thank you to all our contributors who help us understand Europe a little better, one story at a time:

Amanda Michalopoulou
Andrei Liankevich
Anna Julia Donath
Anna Formilan
Astrid Vigsø Bendsen
Aurora Hamm
Bas Lafleur
Bas Mesters
Basia Knobloch
Bozena Kopczynska
Carolina Pihelgas
Caroline De Gruyter
Charlotte Schmitz
Christine Mhundwa
Davide Salvemini
DemoCratease
Dmitrij Kapitelman
EUNIC Netherlands
Guido Bagni La casa nel parco - Casa Gavoglio
Iulian Bocai
Jantien Borsboom
Jasmina Ibrahimovic ICAF Rotterdam
Karuna Mohandas Oldham Libraries
Klaas Gommers
Lambertus Robben EU Made Simple
Lida Tsene
Lisbeth Mærkedahl
Malgorzata Lebda
Margaux Cassan
Nicu Popescu
Paul van der Stap
Paweł Zerka, PhD ECFR
Richard Ovenden
Stuart Hamilton
Tamara Kaňuchová
Zsofia Banuta Unhack Democracy
Veronica Baas
Vicky Anning
Viola Karsten
Yen Duong

An extra special thanks to Lyanne Tonk for doing beautiful work in designing yet another publication, and to
Athenaeum Boekhandels for hosting us for Common Ground’s launch on Europe Day!

Download your free copy here: https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/common-ground-2026/

16/05/2026

final takes place today. 🎤🇪🇺

The Eurovision Song Contest is an event that brings Europeans together. But if you look closer, you see that many of Europe's real challenges lie dormant beneath the surface. It frequently acts as a stage for the continent's most pressing societal and geopolitical conversations.

Does Eurovision not place too much emphasis on national differences?

Which societal issues are expressed on stage?

Or is Eurovision actually an example of Europe's soft power?

To provide a deeper look into the event, we are highlighting background information and analyses from two external commentators:

Dean Vuletic the 'Professor of Eurovision', discusses the geopolitical history of the contest in an interview on our website.

Dave Keating explores why the event has never been "just fun and games," but a mirror for our current reality at the latest of The European Magazine

Watching the finals will never be the same.

🔗 Interviews & article
https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/an-interview-with-the-professor-of-eurovision-dean-vuletic/

https://europeancorrespondent.com/en/r/eurovision-has-never-been-just-fun-and-games
🖼️ Illustration by Davide Salvemini

11/05/2026

As we wrap up our , we reflect on a week that proved that Europe is a lived practice, a work in progress, and, as our Director Andre Wilkens puts it in his latest op-ed, it is a miracle worth celebrating.

Across Europe, we saw the power of connection in real-time:
🕊️ May 5 :We kicked off at Domo with an inspiring , co-hosted with our housemates Cultural Emergency Response (CER), DutchCulture, and the Prince Claus Fund.
🎬 May 6: We teamed up with IDFA for a screening of 'Europe,' followed by a vital conversation between André Wilkens and journalist Caroline De Gruyter on what it takes for Europe to feel like home.
📸 May 7: The launch of ‘Plastic Sea, Perfect Storm’ at Domo . Arnold Van Bruggen and Rob Hornstra’s pop-up exposition remains a must-see look at the social pressures facing our continent.
🏛️ May 8: A packed programme at Pakhuis de Zwijger EIT Culture & Creativity DutchCulture | Creative Europe Desk NL and Kunsten '92 exploring culture’s role in resilience and participation.
🇧🇪 May 8-9 | Brussels: In the heart of the Grand-Place, we supported the European Movement and the City of Brussels for a celebration of unity. From light shows to panel discussions the message was clear: progress lies in participation.
📖 May 9 | European Literature Night: At De Balie with EUNIC Netherlands
🎸 May 9 | EuropaNacht: We brought the day to a close with De Kiesmannen, blending music, art, and performance to imagine a Europe that belongs to everyone.

We officially launched the 6th edition of our annual Common Ground at Athenaeum Boekhandels. You can still grab a physical copy at Athenaeum when purchasing a book from our suggested reading list( link below).

To keep the spirit alive, we are concluding our campaign with Fine Acts by sharing the final works of Lily Kong, Nebojša Cvetković, and Aleksandra Nina Knežević. Their illustrations show Europe not as an abstract idea, but in the familiar gestures of people meeting, caring, and creating together.

Europe is not a given; it is a choice. Thank you for making that choice with us this week.

08/05/2026

In under an hour, Europe Day 2026 begins at Pakhuis de Zwijger.

Artists, journalists, entrepreneurs, educators, technologists, policymakers and cultural organisations will come together to explore culture and creativity as critical infrastructure for Europe’s future. Across conversations on democratic media, digital sovereignty, circular fashion and Europe’s creative ecosystem, the programme asks what helps people stay connected amid fragmentation, misinformation and political pressure.

Contributors include André Wilkens, Marek Tuszynski, Vivian Opsteegh and Borre Akkersdijk, alongside many others working across culture, media and technology.

The programme is organised by the European Cultural Foundation together with DutchCulture | Creative Europe Desk NL, EIT Culture & Creativity and Kunsten ’92.

Free admission. Doors open at 12:30.

07/05/2026

Tomorrow, Europe Day at Pakhuis de Zwijger brings together creatives, cultural organisations, entrepreneurs, policymakers and communities to explore culture and creativity as critical infrastructure for Europe’s future.

Through conversations on democratic media, European sentiment, responsible technology, fashion and circularity, and the future of Europe’s cultural and creative sectors, the programme looks at how culture helps build participation, trust and belonging across the continent.

The event is organised by DutchCulture | Creative Creative Europe Desk NL, EIT Culture & Creativity, the European Cultural Foundation and Kunsten ’92, as part of a wider Europe Day programme taking place across Amsterdam.

Read more and reserve your ticket:
https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/europe-day-at-pakhuis-de-zwijger/

05/05/2026

Europe is not only something we see. It is something we share.

As part of our ongoing Europe Day campaign with Fine Acts, we are sharing a collection of illustrations that bring these moments closer to daily life. This week, we feature Steve McCarthy, Tinna Halldórsdóttir and Tanya Korniichuk. Their work moves through people, as postcards exchanged with friends and family, as images that travel between places. Connection grows through these small acts of sharing.

Download the illustrations for FREE, take part in or register your Europe Day event: https://shorturl.at/gOVXi

04/05/2026

Register now for the online Info Session at 13h00 CET tomorrow. Details below:

Для тих, хто не встигли податися на попередній раунд індивідуальних грантів у межах Culture Helps Solidarity / Культура допомагає: Солідарність, — уже відкрили наступне, третє коло.

Умови незмінні: надаємо до 1200 євро на психологічне відновлення для професіонал_ок культури та активіст_ок, які підтримують людей у вимушеному переїзді та/або поверненні з війська. Кошти можна спрямувати на психотерапію, ретрити, відвідування музеїв та театрів, арттерапевтичні активності та воркшопи, тощо.

Дедлайн заявок: 18 травня, 14:00 за Києвом.

А 5 травня о 14:00 влаштовуємо інфосесію, щоб відповісти на всі ваші запитання. Усі деталі, так само як і форма заявки — у коментарях.

Проєкт «Culture Helps Solidarity / Культура допомагає: Солідарність» співфінансується програмою Creative Europe Європейського Союзу та реалізується European Cultural Foundation (Нідерланди), Іншою Освітою (Україна), zusa (Німеччина) та Рух Veteranka (Україна).

02/05/2026

Hungary has entered a new political phase. But what does that shift actually feel like for people working in culture? Two recent pieces offer a grounded view of this moment.

Hungary After the Election: Voices from the Cultural Field by DutchCulture brings together conversations with artists, cultural workers and human rights professionals in Budapest. The mood is not simple celebration. It is relief mixed with fatigue, hope alongside uncertainty, and a shared sense that change will take time to take hold.
https://dutchculture.nl/en/news/hungary-after-election-voices-cultural-field

Our article, At Europe’s Crossroads: What Hungary Teaches About Democratic Resilience, looks at the longer arc. Drawing on Anna Donáth’s perspective, it shows how democracy is sustained not only through institutions, but through people who continue to act, organise and participate under pressure.
https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/at-europes-crossroads-hungary-democratic-resilience/

Read together, they point to the same reality. Political change opens space, but it does not complete the work. What comes next will be shaped in everyday practice, in cultural life, civic action and public debate.

📸: Carsten Koall/Getty Images.