Policy project "Cultural and Creative Spaces and Cities" - EAC/S23/2017

Deadline: 05 Feb 2018

2. OBJECTIVES – ACTIVITIES - RESULTS

2.1. OBJECTIVES

The present call for proposals aims at strengthening existing networks and individual cultural and creative stakeholders, facilitate the interaction among them, two-way hands- on policy learning with concrete results, studies and examples of best practice.

Proposals should show how the following objectives will be pursued by the action:

1. Bring closer together cultural and creative spaces and local decision-makers
2. Help to better valorise public spaces for social and urban regeneration through culture
3. Share best practice concerning social inclusion and the relations of cultural and creative spaces with their neighbourhoods
4. Explore and share best practice of cultural and creative spaces with aspects of the collaborative economy and innovative models for the delivery of public services

The proposal should contain information as to how it intends to build on the results achieved and the policy lessons derived from previous actions funded under the cross- sectoral strand (European Network of Creative Hubs3 and Culture for Cities and Regions4), other relevant projects such as the Trans-Europe Halles network and "Creative Lenses"5, funded under the Creative Europe Programme, the European 

Network of Cultural Centres (ENCC)6 as well as on the successful experiences of urban regeneration driven by a number of European Capitals of Culture (ECOC)7.

Concerning creative hubs, proposals should explain how they intend to build on the existing website and mapping of creative hubs in the EU and Creative Europe countries - carried out in the context of the European Network of Creative Hubs - also taking into account the experiences made with the peer-to-peer exchanges as shared on the network's website and making use of the available tools, networks and cross-sectorial policy learnings for further action.

Concerning the activities aimed at local, municipal and regional decision-makers, the proposal should take into consideration the main findings gathered during the course of the Culture for Cities and Regions project as shared on the project's website8 (recommendations from coaching sessions, learning needs identified during the study visits, catalogue of case studies).

2.4. ACTIVITIES

Proposals should as a minimum include the following activities:

2.4.1. Identification and selection of eligible cultural and creative spaces

Identification of cultural and creative spaces (such as creative hubs and cultural centres) in countries participating in the Creative Europe programme as well as other stakeholders in particular at the local level (e.g. municipalities, social centres, public libraries or other).

Applicants should describe how they will go about selecting the relevant stakeholders, in particular bearing in mind their field of activity, which must be in the cultural and creative sectors, taking into account their activities and the services they offer to the sector such as workshops, performances, exhibitions and the like.

Proposals should also specify how they are going to achieve an optimal geographical balance and coverage across EU Member States and other beneficiary European countries participating in the network.

Applicants should explain in detail of how they plan to engage the existing networks in the relevant areas to work together and describe how they will mitigate the risk of lack of desire for cooperation among existing networks and other stakeholders.

2.4.2. Organisation of networking meetings, thematic workshops, skills development actions and study-visits

The applicants should describe how they will help to put in place the networking meetings, thematic workshops, skills development actions and study-visits and make a proposal concerning their number, timing, tentative places, resources needed and other relevant information. Proposals should also include information about the different rounds of calls for interest and selection procedure of participants, making sure that a geographical balance and sector-specific balance is ensured.

The applicants should draw from the experience and successful formats used in previous actions such as Culture for Cities and Regions for the study-visits and case studies produced, as well as from the events organised by the European Network of Creative Hubs and other similar projects.

The proposal should explain in detail how the different beneficiaries will be addressed on the one hand by targeted, tailor-made specific actions, and on the other hand through wider cross-sectoral actions with heterogeneous stakeholders (f.ex. the often economically-oriented creative hubs community and public structures and cultural centres). The proposal should also explain in detail how local/regional policy-makers will be involved in the process, in particular with respect to study-visits or other actions.

2.4.3. Organisation of a launching and a closing conference in Brussels Proposals would need to contain information on the following points:

•   Organisation of a launching conference at the beginning of the project in Brussels of up to 150-200 participants from the creative and cultural community, the different relevant networks and projects, policy-makers, as well as the press and other participants. This conference should aim at, inter alia, discussing the needs of and gathering suggestions from the participants. Press coverage of the event as well as using appropriate innovative communication channels and innovative conference methods will be crucial for the success and visibility of the event.
•   A closing conference in Brussels of up to 150-200 participants should take place towards the end of the project. The event should give maximum visibility to the project and to the participating cultural and creative networks and their community in order to present their activities, project results and study reports. The conference should also provide cultural and creative sectors networking opportunities, including through interaction between the participants.

A creative event should take place at the margins of the conference, with presentation of creative output from the cultural and creative spaces, showcasing visual arts/performance/music/multimedia either in the corridors/public spaces of the conference venue or as part of an evening programme in a separate creative venue.

For both conferences, the participation of representatives from a maximum number of countries should be sought, in order to achieve a sufficient degree of geographical balance. The Commission will need to give its approval on the event details, including location, programme, list of speakers and invitees before final arrangements are made.

2.4.4. Organisation of different rounds of peer-to-peer exchange programmes between the different stakeholders described above

Applicants should describe how they will, based on the pilot experiences of peer-to- peer exchanges within the framework of the European network of creative hubs, put into practice a peer-to-peer exchange programme within the current action and carry out different rounds of calls for interest and selection of participants, making sure that a geographical balance and sector-specific balance is ensured.

As specified previously, the current action intends to go beyond the previous peer-to- peer exchange programme9, mainly focussed on creative hubs managers, and target creators/artists of the creative hub community or the cultural centre in order for them to benefit from an experience in a similar structure in a different country and deriving from it a concrete deliverable (not necessarily in the form of a report, it can also be a short video or other media, see the experiences of the peer-to-peer exchanges of the European Creative Hubs Network).

As described in the objectives of the action, the peer-to-peer exchange programme should also help to bring closer cultural and creative spaces and decision-makers, in particular at the local/municipal or regional level.

Applicants should describe in detail how this objective could be achieved (f.ex. by having policy-makers hot-desking in some of the hubs and spend time together with the community working on specific tasks), and/or how cultural and creative professionals can better understand the challenges local authorities are facing and how they can contribute to finding common solutions, (f.ex. on how to better valorise public spaces for social and urban regeneration through culture, or the promotion of social inclusion and employment creation).

2.4.5. Development of a web-page, social media for the project, building upon the existing webpage of the European Creative Hubs network

The proposal should explain how it intends to build on the existing website and make use of the inter-active map of creative hubs in the EU and Creative Europe countries and other resources elaborated and how to make use of the publicly available tools as well as the social media pages (Twitter, Facebook pages). In addition, the proposal will also explain how the project's website will showcase interesting relevant resources elaborated by other networks funded under Creative Europe, in particular the work on innovative business models for arts and cultural organisations under "Creative Lenses", as well as the Trans-Europe-Halles network of cultural centres and the European Network of Cultural Centres (ENCC).

The project's website should also include, inter alia, useful links to EU funding for cultural and creative sectors and its relevant national/local contact points as well as national and other relevant funding opportunities and contacts for the cultural and creative sector.

After the end of the project, the project website will remain active for at least 5 years.

2.4.6. Elaboration of a toolbox/recommendations/manuals

Proposals should describe their methodology to elaborate a toolbox /recommendations for the planning and maintenance of (industrial) heritage sites where cultural and creative spaces are located. An issue often raised is the need to involve all parties, in particular the cultural and creative community, from the very early stages of planning onwards. Another issue of importance concerns the infrastructure of the spaces, since both challenges10 and solutions can be similar across the different venues. Given the focus of the 2018 European Year of Cultural Heritage on participatory approaches to the management of cultural heritage, proposals should specify a methodology for consulting members of the cultural and creative community as well as residents/neighbours and produce a manual/toolbox that would be useful for the whole community. The experience, expertise and input of city/municipal authorities will certainly be a key asset, which should be taken into account.

2.4.7. Elaboration and testing of best practice as well as policy studies

Proposals should contain a description of how they intend to go about in order to consult and gather best practice case examples with the cultural and creative community and other local stakeholders on the suggested topics below:

• -  social inclusion and the relations of cultural and creative spaces with the neighbourhoods where they are located (including good practice examples)
• -  the collaborative economy and organisation of new forms of work (building on existing publications11, with details concerning cases and the experience of the creative hubs community in particular)
• -  innovative models for the delivery of public services (such as job creation, business development, cultural/ social subsidies, skills development) through cultural and creative spaces in order to bring them closer to citizens
• -  CCIs/ cultural entrepreneurship (building on existing publications12)

• -  Use of data collected by cultural and creative spaces for income generation
• -  Measuring/proving impact of creative spaces/hubs
• -  Describing where cultural and creative spaces made use of EU funding or see the potential to do so
• -  Other relevant topics

2.4.8. Final study (including best practice catalogues/papers/MOOCs13 and

other visual material/, lessons to be learnt, recommendations)

Proposals should contain information on the content of a report, in addition to the administrative operational reports, which will be shared in advance and discussed with participants during the final conference.

As a minimum, this report should contain:

2.5.Lessons learnt concerning challenges and needs as well as on how cultural and creative spaces respond to change in society and the economy in general.

Conclusions, executive summary and recommendations, in particular with view to future policy making and project funding in the field of innovative business models and the cultural and creative sectors in general.

3. TIMETABLE

Deadline for submitting applications
5 February 2018

Evaluation period
February - April 2018

Information to applicants
May 2018

Signature of grant agreement
June 2018

Starting date of the action
September / October 2018

Kick-off meeting with the Commission
October 2018

End date of the action
Starting date + max 28 months

4. BUDGET AVAILABLE
The total budget earmarked for the co-financing of this project is estimated at 1,500,000

EUR.
The call budget will be allocated to one single project.

The support of a project on cultural and creative spaces and cities shall be supported under this action.

The financial contribution from the Commission cannot exceed 80% of the total eligible costs14.

EU support will be granted on condition that the administrative and financial procedures are properly completed.

The amounts mentioned in the present document are subject to the release of the necessary appropriations by the budgetary authority.

The European Commission reserves the right not to distribute all the funds available.

5. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

 Eligible applicants

6. 6.1.

To be eligible applicants must:

• -  be a public17 or private organisation with legal personality (natural persons are not eligible to apply for a grant under this call);
• -  be a single entity active in the cultural and creative sectors or a consortium of which most of its members should be active in the cultural and creative sectors
• -  have their registered legal office in one of the beneficiary European countries under the Creative Europe programme.

Only applications from legal entities established in the countries participating in the Creative Europe programmes are eligible:

  EU Member States;

  Eligible non-EU third countries, participants to the Creative Europe Programme18: Iceland, Norway, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Republic of Serbia, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine and Tunisia.

In case the application is submitted by several entities working together (consortium), the above criteria apply to each one of those entities.

No modification to the application is allowed once the deadline for submission has elapsed. However, if there is a need to clarify certain aspects or to correct clerical mistakes, the Commission may contact the applicant during the evaluation process45.

Applicants will be informed in writing about the results of the selection process. Application forms are available at https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/calls_en

Applications must be submitted in the correct form, duly completed and dated. They must be submitted in 5 copies (one original clearly identified as such, plus 4 copies) and signed by the person authorised to enter into legally binding commitments on behalf of the applicant organisation.

Where applicable, all additional information considered necessary by the applicant can be included on separate sheets.

Applications must be sent to the following address

European Commission - Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture Directorate D - Culture and creativity
Unit D1 – Cultural Policy - (CALL EAC/S23/2017)
Walter Zampieri

J-70, 2/232 B-1049 Brussels Belgium

- by post, date as postmark;
- in person, date as receipt,
- by courier service, date of receipt by the courier service.

Applications sent by fax or e-mail will not be accepted.