The Cities Ahead programme supports ambitious European cultural and creative cities in attaining more international visibility and cultural appeal. At a two-day academy, renowned experts impart practical knowledge on international cultural urban development. Through a worldwide open call, cities receive further stimuli from the cultural and creative industries.
Cities Ahead is a good opportunity for cities to reflect on what resources they have.
Charles Landry
Programme
The programme consists of two phases:
The Cities Ahead Academy consists of expert input and workshops to train local administrations and cultural actors in (international) cultural urban development
The Academy programme is designed for 2 days and consists of 3 freely selectable modules
The Academy is open to employees from cultural administration, economic development, urban planning, offices for international relations, and tourism offices as well as employees of local cultural institutions
The global Cities Ahead Open Call promotes innovative and participatory creative projects in the participating cities
Modules
Building Creative City Ecosystems
Development of cities as cultural locations and the importance of creative districts
Leveraging Culture for Sustainability
Potentials of art and culture for sustainability-oriented urban development
Crafting Cultural Strategies
Potentials and application of cultural development plans
Joining International City Networks
Insight into city networks, their modes of operation, goals, and benefits
Working with Cultural Data
Collecting and applying cultural data for the best possible impact for cities
Becoming European Capital of Culture
Procedure and insights into successful application processes
Cities Ahead is for cities with a population of 50,000 or more. If this applies to your city, your city is eligible to participate.
If you are a representative of your local municipal administration, you can apply to participate in Cities Ahead on your city’s behalf. Participation in Cities Ahead should be supported by the leadership of the local cultural administration.
At the Cities Ahead Academy, up to 30 representatives of your city will train and exchange ideas with renowned international experts. They will receive up-to-date expertise on cultural urban development. With the Cities Ahead Open Call organised by the Goethe-Institut, you will draw the attention of the international art and creative scenes to your city.
The Goethe-Institut organises the call for applications and, through its worldwide network, reaches out to artists and creative professionals who develop innovative concepts for specific local challenges. Applications are processed via an online platform of the Goethe-Institut.
Participation in the Cities Ahead Academy is financed by the Goethe-Institut and the participating city. The concrete own contribution of the city will be defined after the selection of the modules and ranges between €7,000 and €10,000. Artist fees and implementation costs for the Cities Ahead Open Call are defined and borne by the participating city.
Participating cities provide rooms and catering for the Cities Ahead Academy. They identify potential participants in the Cities Ahead Academy and support the invitation process.
Staff from cultural administration, economic development, urban planning, offices of international relations, and tourism offices. In addition, employees of local cultural institutions can benefit from participating in Cities Ahead.
Fill in the application formby 15 September 2023. You will receive feedback on your participation in Cities Ahead 2024 by 15 October 2023 at the latest.
No. By applying, you are not entering into any commitment. You can withdraw your application at any time.
