We have family in Europe!

While Apropa Cultura is about to celebrate its 20 years of history since its inception in the Auditori, and currently has a network of almost 200 cultural facilities in Catalonia and representation in the Balearic Islands, the Basque Country and Madrid, we have discovered that similar projects have also been emerging in other European cities.

We have “sisters” in Austria, France, Belgium, Finland, Germany, Switzerland and Luxembourg. In all cases, these are non-profit organizations that receive public subsidies and private support to carry out their mission: to facilitate access to culture for people in a situation or risk of social exclusion. And with trajectories that range from 8 to 20 years.

It is exciting to see that this need is emerging everywhere. Unfortunately, the reality of social exclusion is shared; but so is the awareness that specific programs are needed, because market inertia alone does not guarantee this access.

In Luxembourg, we would like to thank Luis Santiago, from Culture for all, for being the person who connected us and promoted the creation of this European network. And also to Mònika Wagner, from Hunger auf Kunst und Kultur, for inviting me to participate.

In France, Culture du Coeur is present in half of its departments and facilitates access through social and health entities, in a similar way to Apropa Cultura. Its network includes nearly 6,000 programmers. Interestingly, in the rest of the countries access is provided directly to the beneficiary.

In Belgium, Article 27 has specialized in cultural mediation and especially promotes individual access for people living below the poverty line. In Austria, the KulturPass program has delegations in each federal state, autonomous and self-financed, under the coordination of Vienna.

In Switzerland, the program is managed by Caritas and has an identification card that allows free access to the cultural offer. In Germany we find initiatives such as KulturLeben Berlin, KulturRaum München and KulturListe Düsseldorf. One of its most relevant characteristics is the large volume of volunteers who accompany their “guests” (invited) to cultural activities. They call them, make suggestions and accompany them, because they understand that, without this support, many people would not attend. They are people referred by social services, but who are not part of any organized group.

Personally, I love the term “guests”. In the same way that cultural facilities have VIP guests at premieres, in Germany these are also social guests.

In Germany, Switzerland and also in Lyon, the offer includes sporting events within the cultural program. I recently visited the Berlin project on the occasion of its 15th anniversary. Its founder, Angela Meyenburg, has promoted initiatives that go beyond access, such as a truly impressive inclusive orchestra.

In Finland, the Kaikukortti program stands out for its maturity in data analysis and identification of recipients, who have a barcoded card. It is present in more than 100 municipalities and, curiously, was born 16 years ago in the Helsinki Public Art Museum —as Apropa Cultura a l’Auditori— before becoming an entity in its own right.

At the last meeting we received some worrying news: two countries, Belgium and Finland, have suffered significant cuts in the subsidies planned for 2026, as a result of the current political situation.

That is why we want to strengthen this European network: to be stronger in critical moments like the ones we are experiencing, to prevent progress from being made at the expense of vulnerable people, and to continue to build alliances that defend their right to culture.

Sonia Gainza, director of Apropa Cultura.