Short Description
Amid shifting geopolitical dynamics, shrinking civic space, and growing reflection on how culture is governed and funded, existing models of cultural institutions, shaped by long-standing approaches to public subsidy, curatorship, and governance, are being tested by changing conditions and emerging needs.
Creating Futures: Rethinking Cultural Institutions, Infrastructure, and Investment convenes 45 institutional leaders, cultural funders, policymakers, private sector stakeholders, and creative economy actors for a global exchange on the future of cultural infrastructure. Taking place at Salzburg Global in 2026, this high-level program will explore emerging institutional models, strategic investment approaches, and the evolving role of culture in shaping cohesive, resilient, and forward-looking societies.
Strategic Themes
- Expanding the Definition of Cultural Infrastructure: Exploring how cultural ecosystems are supported through informal networks, civic-led initiatives, and hybrid models alongside formal institutions, and how this broader understanding can inform more inclusive and effective infrastructure strategies.
- Designing Sustainable and Context-Driven Investment Models: Examining how funders, governments, and private actors can adopt ethical, locally anchored, and context-responsive funding strategies that reduce reliance on external donors and support long-term cultural sovereignty, equity, and resilience.
- Rethinking Institutional Governance and Accountability: Investigating alternative models of leadership, ownership, and decision-making within cultural institutions, and identifying governance approaches that are more transparent, participatory, and responsive to evolving societal needs.
- Aligning Cultural Infrastructure with Global Development Goals: Exploring how cultural systems contribute to broader development agendas—such as education, equity, sustainability, and peacebuilding—and how they can be more strategically integrated into global policy frameworks.
Eligibility
Cultural funders and public institutions around the world are confronting the limits of conventional investment models and governance frameworks with growing recognition that existing systems—across public, private, and philanthropic sectors—are not always aligned with current realities or future needs. This moment demands deeper collaboration, mutual learning, and renewed imagination across regions and sectors to shape more inclusive, sustainable, and responsive cultural infrastructure.
This program will offer a vital platform for strategic dialogue, reflective practice, and cross-regional exchange, designed to surface practical insights, strengthen relationships, and support the cultural ecosystems of the future.
How to Apply
Online Application
Program Benefits & Awards
Selection will prioritize participants from across the Majority World*, including Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and parts of the Middle East. We prioritize the participation of individuals from communities historically less visible in the arts and culture sector. We will actively seek to represent people of color, disabled individuals, those who identify as LGBT**, and participants from low-income, Indigenous, ethnically diverse, or migrant backgrounds.
There are limited spots for partially funded participation via scholarships (covering travel, room and/or board costs), to get involved in this program.
Entry Fee
None
Location
Salzburg, Austria
Timeline
- Application Deadline: 31 October 2025
Website Link: https://www.salzburgglobal.org/multi-year-series/culture/pageId/11724
