As part of the development of the Aveiro Candidacy for the European Capital of Culture in 2027, Aveiro Municipality (CMA) will participate in a transnational cooperation fund promoted by the Culture Next network, a group that brings together current and former candidate cities for the European Capital of Culture . It is a network created in a logic from cities to cities, having in the sharing and cooperation between partners a way to achieve common goals and visions. The third meeting of this network took place in Aveiro on October 1st and 2nd, 2018.
The creation of the fund aims to promote cultural and social innovation, being created through an annual contribution from participating cities. The value of this first phase is € 2,000, corresponding to the pilot phase of the project.
The fund’s governance model provides for the creation of a Steering Committee, a decision-making body on strategic priorities and in the selection of projects to be financed, as well as a Technical Unit, whose main tasks are to organize the selection process, manage the relationship between the Steering Committee and the candidates and assisting the beneficiaries during the implementation phase.
The fund will function through calls for proposals and the presentation of projects, and the Technical Unit is responsible for working with the candidates in order to guarantee financial support and contact with other networks that enable and enhance the impact of the projects. The Cultural Center of Cluj, Romania, will act as a Technical Unit in the pilot phase, as it is the current administrative unit of Culture Next.
With this initiative, another step is taken in the objectives of CMA and Culture Next, seeking a broader recognition of culture as a factor of sustainable development and extending the frameworks of cultural cooperation on a European scale.
Thus, Aveiro deepens its mission within the scope of this network, advancing the implementation of policies and programs of urban development oriented to culture, based on the experiences, participatory processes and collaborations established during the preparation for the candidacy for European Capital of Culture in 2027. The fund will also allow local artists to participate more broadly in the European cultural fabric, with a support vehicle and a dissemination network for their projects.
