Culture on site

Cultural participation has a long tradition in Stuttgart and is practiced in many different ways. Numerous popular culture, community art and cultural education projects offer people of all ages the opportunity to actively participate and develop their creativity. The idea of lifelong learning plays a central role here: from choirs and amateur theater to urban gardening, the offerings open up spaces in which different interests and talents come together.

The interdisciplinary orientation of many initiatives, which address current cross-cutting social issues and develop innovative approaches, is particularly noteworthy. Whether through creative forms of expression or collaborative projects, this work contributes to empowerment and the promotion of a vibrant, inclusive urban society. Cultural participation in Stuttgart combines tradition with progressive thinking, creating a dynamic exchange between people and topics.

The socio-cultural centers in Stuttgart perform successful and important work for the city's society. Over several decades, sociocultural centers have undergone a transformation from places of counterculture to established event venues. They are also characterized by the diversity of their offerings.

These range from a varied cultural program and the promotion of up-and-coming artists to children and youth work, district work, educational and political work. By enabling active participation, the socio-cultural centers promote cultural participation and civic engagement. The content is progressive, cosmopolitan and down-to-earth at the same time.

Ideally, cultural education starts right on the doorstep of the citizens. District culture offers people in the district the opportunity to get involved in culture, to help shape cultural events and to experience low-threshold cultural offerings directly on site.

District culture creates quality of life by culturally enlivening residential areas, creating meeting spaces and offering individuals opportunities to identify with their city. Stuttgart's districts are home to numerous associations and initiatives that target their cultural offerings at local citizens.

The kick-off for the development of a new funding fund for cultural participation by the Stuttgart Department of Culture took place on October 18 with a large turnout and lively discussions. Around 100 cultural professionals and representatives from around 85 non-profit organizations and artists' collectives took part in the event, which was held at the Urban Offices Stuttgart-Mitte.

The aim of the all-day workshop was to find ideas and strategies for the co-design of cultural processes by various social groups and stakeholders. The focus was particularly on the areas of diversity, community arts, inclusion, cultural education and cultural mediation.

The proposals and ideas are currently being evaluated internally by the Cultural Office in order to formulate new guidelines for the realignment of the funding system. Further participation formats are planned.