Culturavirus – the art of new communities Erasmus Project

Project Title

Culturavirus – the art of new communities

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Partnerships for Creativity

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Creativity and culture; Civic engagement / responsible citizenship; Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning

Project Summary

CULTURAVIRUS – the art of new communities

The partnership project “Culturavirus – the art of new communities” created by three organizations: Bemowskie Centrum Kultury (Poland), Associacao Renovar A Mouraria (Portugal), Pogon – Zagrebački centar za nezavisnu culu i mlade (Croatia), is a response to the challenges and needs related with the COVID-19 pandemic, in terms of the implementation of program activities of cultural institutions and social integration. Its purpose is the exchange of practices and the selection of methods and tools in the field of “community arts” that are included in the daily work of employees and associates of partner organizations in times the social crisis. The 16-month project will involve a total of 36 participants – employees, volunteers, community leaders and artists associated with the organizations.

The main goal of the project “Culturavirus – the art of new communities” is to work towards the bottom-up involvement of the recipients of institutions – strengthening their sense of agency and increasing participation in activities. The indirect goal – the development of project participants, substantive leaders of partner organizations, who are initiators, activists and educators of these activities, addressed to adult members of local communities.

The project will include 3 training programs lasting 5 days, in each of the partner organizations’ countries, focusing on the strengths of the host organizations:
– Working with the ABCD method – community development based on resources (thanks to the resources of the Bemowo Cultural Center)
– Digital forms of activation of local communities (thanks to the resources of Bemowo Centrum Kultury and Associacao Renovar a Mouraria)
– Working with a multicultural community, taking into account the refugee and migrant background (thanks to the resources of Associacao Renovar a Mouraria)
– Working on the basis of local tangible and intangible cultural heritage (thanks to the resources of Associacao Renovar a Mouraria)
– Organization and running of artistic residencies (thanks to the resources of Pogon – Zagrebački centar za nezavisnu Kultu i mlade)
– Building a system of comprehensive support for residents active in the field of culture and art (thanks to the resources of Pogon – Zagrebački centar za nezavisnu Kultu i mlade)

Project participants will learn a variety of approaches to activities in the field of „community arts” and will understand the strategies and the environmental context of each organization, along with learning about the operational methods in implementing selected projects and jointly coming up with ways to introduce new ideas in their local communities. In order to use the extraordinary potential of international cooperation, the training schedule will be varied with numerous local cultural events.

Thanks to the participation in the project, organizations will strengthen local partnerships, create a transnational network of support and develop their program activities based on local resources and the “community arts” method. With the security of this support, along with a stable organizational structure, the assumption of a long-term plan of the impact of the project on participants, organizations and local communities will be possible, regardless of external circumstances.

The course of the project implementation and its effects will be disseminated on the EPALE platform, as well as on social media and the organizations’ websites. All results will be available free of charge to disseminate the developed tools and common practices related to the project.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 59052 Eur

Project Coordinator

Bemowskie Centrum Kultury w Dzielnicy Bemowo m.st. Warszawy & Country: PL

Project Partners

• ASSOCIACAO RENOVAR A MOURARIA
• Pogon – Zagrebacki centar za nezavisnu kulturu i mlade