The newly launched regional programme ALL AROUND-CULTURE announces two open calls for cultural and artistic entities and individuals.

ALL-AROUND CULTURE is a new regional programme co-funded by the European Union that aims to foster a vital cultural ecosystem as an enabling environment for social and economic inclusion of young people in seven countries across the Arab region including Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, and Libyan and Syrian communities in those countries.

Throughout the 4-year implementation period, ALL-AROUND CULTURE programme will provide support to established and emerging cultural entities to foster their investment in sustainable collaboration, to youth-led cultural and civic initiatives to encourage community-based and contextual artistic production and to cross-border collaboration fellowships to initiate collaborations of cultural organizations within the Arab Region and Europe. A cross-cutting resource center will be developed to connect all the learning needs and knowledge resources of this programme, as well as share ecosystem based approaches and practices with a wider community. All-Around Culture will also enable the establishment of a platform advocating for open access to culture and for actions to ameliorate the working environment of cultural and artistic actions in the countries of intervention.

All-Around Culture is pleased to launch two open calls; 1) Cultural Alliances and 2) Youth-Led cultural and Civic Initiatives This programme is co-funded by the European Union www.allaroundculture.com

Call 1: Cultural Alliances: collaborations between cultural and artistic entities.

The Cultural Alliances component encourages building collaborations between cultural & artistic entities with the aim to develop and support an ecosystem approach for cultural actors in the Arab region. “Implementing our flagship institutional support program Abbara since 2011, and the pilot program Wasl to support collaborative cultural projects since 2019, it was evident that the arts and culture organizations along the years and across the region were finding value in working closely together, and were seeking more often, to build solidarities, develop new creative ways to ensuring their sustainability, strengthening their engagement with their communities, and to reaching out together to wider audiences. The Covid-19 pandemic only emphasized the need to strengthen the sector by supporting its organizations. This scheme would provide the opportunity to three organizations of different sizes and locations to work closely together, as well as a network of 36 organizations to engage in a learning process that will include all of us the partners implementing the All-Around Culture programme. The collaborative spirit as an ethos is key to our programme and to how we believe the arts and culture ecosystem may thrive in spite of all the challenges we are facing across our region.” Helena Nassif, Managing Director of Culture Resource (Al-Mawred Al-Thaqafy)/The Cultural Alliances component of All-Around Culture

This component will support up to 12 Cultural Alliances working in the mentioned countries. Each Alliance will receive a grant of up to €110,000 to support the stability of entities and to foster their investment in sustainable collaboration.

Application deadline for the Cultural Alliances is January 07, 2021.

Call 2: The Youth-Led Cultural and Civic Initiatives

The call for Youth-Led Cultural and Civic Initiatives is addressed to young artists, collectives, researchers, civil society activists and cultural operators interested in developing community-based and contextual projects in their territory. “More than This programme is co-funded by the European Union www.allaroundculture.com

ever L’Art Rue is convinced that its local artistic and civic engagement now also has to contribute towards regional ecosystems and the practices of younger generations. That is what All-Around Culture offers: a regional context that allows for the creation of shared space that all of us deeply need.” Said Jan Goossens, Artistic Director of L’Art Rue/The Youth-Led Cultural and Civic Initiatives component of All-Around Culture. Selected applicants will receive a research grant of up to €3,000 and production grants with a maximum amount of €20,000 to cover production costs.

Application deadline for Youth-Led cultural and Civic Initiatives is December 25, 2020.