Networks initiated as part of the project

Organiser: Arts Council Norway

Participants:

• Finland: Eva-Maria Hakola, Art Promotion Centre Finland
• Iceland: Áslaug Dóra Eyjólfsdóttir, Undervisnings-, forsknings- og kulturministeriet
• Sweden: Simon Strömberg, Statens kulturråd
• Denmark: Inger Frydendahl, Slots- og Kulturstyrelsen
• Åland: Annika Dahlblom, Museumssjef, Kulturbyrån
• Greenland: Mika Lyberth, Departementet for Uddannelse, Kultur, Forskning og Kirke
• The Faroe Island: Armgard Veihe, Ministry of culture
• Norway: Silje Eikemo Sande, project manager, Arts Council Norway, Aesha Ullah, Senior Advisor, Arts Council Norway

Critical Friends is an expert advisory group of black, brown and indigenous arts and culture professionals representing all Nordic countries. The group was established as part of the project An Inclusive Cultural Sector in the Nordics. The handpicked advisory group represents a diversity of artistic expressions, cultural backgrounds, personal experiences and competence in different fields of research such as race and gender theory. The group has offered advice and recommendations on inclusion and diversity work throughout the project.

The mandate of Critical Friends is:

• to have an advisory function relating to the steering committee of the project by asking questions, adding new perspectives and providing knowledge.
• to provide input on project activities and reports.
• to suggest new activities in the project.
• to inform their network about the project.
• to organize a meeting place for artists with multicultural backgrounds.
• to write a final report evaluating their experiences from the network.
• The group will also offer their advice to the other networks that have been established through the project. As well as contribute to conferences and seminars organised by the project steering committee.

Participants:

• Thomas Prestø, group leader (Norway), founder and artistic director of Tabanka Dance Ensemble, dancer and activist.
• The Faroe Islands: Nadia Abraham, founder and artistic director of FIMFF, Faroe Islands Minority FilmFestival.
• Greenland: Alexander Montgomery-Andersen, dancer, choreographer, and founder of AXL Productions.
• Sweden: Ninos Josef, dancer (previously at Royal Swedish Ballet), actor (Dramaten) and activist. Editor in chief of Kultwatch and board member of Konstnärsnämnden (the Swedish Arts Grants Committee).
• Denmark: Julienne Doko, dancer (African contemporary dance), choreographer and instructor.
• Denmark: Jeannette Ehlers, visual artist.
• Finland: Kemê Pellicer, visual artist and project coordinator for Global Art Point.
• Norway: Sandra Mujinga, visual artist and performance artist.
• Iceland: Nermine El Ansari, visual artist.
• Åland Islands: Nayab Ikram, photographer and visual artist.

Recommendations

Through the project, Critical Friends have developed a set of recommendations for art professionals, art institutions and cultural policy.

See the recommendations here 

A network of organisations with special competence in inclusion and culture.

These are the leading organisations when it comes to working with diversity and inclusion in a cultural context. Their role is to find ways to share their knowledge and methods with the cultural sector. This includes gathering knowledge and making it available, and offer guidance to cultural institutions. The network has recently released the publication "Plads i kulturen". It will soon be available in English.

Participants:

• Norway: TrAP, Transcultural Arts Production and Interkultur, Drammen
• Denmark: CKI, Center for kunst og interkultur
• Sweden: InterCult
• Finland: Culture for All
• Iceland: Reykjavik City Library

Reports

NFI has developed a set of recommendations for practitioners, professionals and policy makers. Read the guide here:

Guide: A more inclusive cultural sector in the Nordics  

An overview of texts, projects and practice on cultural diversity in the arts and culture sector in the Nordic region. Read the report here:

Report: In Search of True Inclusion and Practice

The three Scandinavian Councils for Schools of Music and Performing Arts has initiated a platform for sharing and developing knowledge of a more inclusive school-structure.

Organisers:

KIL Norsk kulturskoleråd (Norway)

DAMUSA (Denmark)

Svensk kulturskoleråd (Sweden)

Participants:

• Norway: Larvik kulturskole, Ringerike kulturskole, Malvik kulturskole, Tromsø kulturskole.
• Denmark: Tønder kulturskole, Brøndby Musikskole, Aarhus musikskole.
• Sweden: Simrishhamn kulturskola, Vara kulturskole, Hallstahammar kulturskola

Manifest 

The network have written a manifest with recomendations for inclusive schools. Read it here (Norwegian text only).

Kulturskolemanifest

Nordic Museum Network

Organiser: Norway, TrAP (Transcultural Arts Production)

Participants:

• Norway: Nasjonalmuseet, Oslo Museum - IKM (Interkulturelt Museum),
• Sweden: Moderna Museet Stockholm,
• Denmark: Statens Museum for kunst
• Iceland: National Gallery of Iceland
• Åland Islands: Ålands Konstmuseum

This is a Nordic network for library staff who are engaged in language-cafés, reading groups and other initiatives to make libraries more inclusive.

Organiser: Det Kongelige bibliotek / Slots og kulturstyrelsen (Denmark)

Participants: All countries, over 50 libraries in the Nordic region have participated in the meetings.

Led by Dansk kunstnerråd (Denmark).

The network group of Nordic artists with multicultural backgrounds is based on a wish to promote an inclusive Nordic public, where both upcoming and established artists have the opportunity to share their work and experiences through workshops and artist practice.

The major objective of the project is to lift new artist voices into the public debate and make them visible through their art. The group consist of artists from five Nordic countries, who has created art that creates conversations between cultures. The network group consists of artists from Denmark, Sweden / Åland, Iceland, Finland and Norway) and focuses on co-cultures, interpersonal initiatives and the value and ability the art can have in promoting inclusion. The artists from the five Nordic countries are going to create workshops and artistic events where they deal with how their background and art has a place in the Nordic artistic landscape.

The participants are:

• Lara Alessandra Sanna, photographer and art historian (Sweden and Italy)
• Lisbeth Karline, visual artist (Greenland and Denmark)
• Katrina Bugaj Instructor and dramaturge (Denmark, Poland and USA)
• Helen Al-Janabi, actor (Sweden and Syria)
• Nomzi Kumalo, musician (Norway and South Africa)
• Phyllis Akinyi, dancer, choreographer (Denmark, Poland and USA)
• Pelle Åkerstrôm, performing artist (Sweden and Germany)
• Ôzcan Ajrulovsk, author and poet (Denmark and Turkey)
• Parwa Pizadeh, dancer (Åland islands and Iran)
• Serife Kart video artist and calligrapher (Denmark, Turkey and Kenya)
• Toni Usman, actor (Norway and Pakistan)
• Ufuoma Overo, author and producer (Iceland and Nigeria)
• Veronica Salinas, author (Norway and Argentina)
• Rafael Cao Millan, architect and visual artist (Iceland and Mexico)
• Wiola Anna Ujazdowska, visual artist (Poland and Iceland)

Read more in the project description (PDF)

This networks explores how a Culture Card can be a method to increase participation in arts and culture.

Organiser: Culture for All (Finland). Participants: Kulturkort for ungdom, Hedmark fylkeskommune (Norway), Opplevelseskortet, Ålesund kommune (Norway), Dalarna Kommune (Sweden) and Studieforbundet Bilda (Sweden).

It is a common understanding in the Nordic countries that public support should be directed to cultural activities for everyone. Research shows that people living with low income face financial obstacles in using cultural services. This network was created to share information, knowledge, models and experience on concrete tools and models created in the Nordic countries regarding financial and social accessibility of cultural services and supporting cultural participation of asylum seekers and migrants. Read more about the different initiatives here:

Kaikukortti

By Culture for All, Finland: With a community card an employee can get a free ticket when arranging a group visit for Kaikukortti cardholders. With the Kaikukortti card one can obtain free admission to theatres, festivals, adult education center courses or museums. Kaikukortti is available for customers of the social welfare and health communities that are part of the Kaikukortti networks. It is meant for young people, adults and families who are financially strained and who are, for that reason, unable to attend cultural events or courses. Kaikukortti is distributed for example in immigrant services, in adult social work and in shelters and supported housing, and won the Best Practice award 2018 by Talentia Union of Professional Social Workers.

See more 

Kulturkortet Hedmark

Kulturkortet Hedmark is a culture card for young people between 13 and 21. The card is free and gives benefits like reductions in prices of tickets (e.g 20 kr cheaper movie tickets or reduction in opera tickets from 450 NOK to 50 NOK). The card is valid only in cultural and sport organizations in the Hedmark area. 1 700 cards were distributed and used 6000 times during 2017.

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Kulturkompis

The Kulturkompis (Culture buddies) concept was founded 2016 by Studieförbundet Bilda. The idea is to form a group and introduce culture and new friends to immigrants with the help of native Swedes. The group, consisting of 2 native and 2 immigrant members who are older than 16 years, gets free tickets from cultural actors for entering theatre, movies or concerts. In Sweden in October 2019, there were 1541 culture buddies, 19 municipalities and 157 cultural actors involved.

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Opplevelseskortet Norway 

Opplevelsekortet (Adventure card) was launched in Norway in 2009. It gives young persons in low-income families free access to cultural activities, sports and other activities. The card is granted by NAV (Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration) and it is in use in 70 municipalities out of 422 in Norway. The card has now been relaunched as the app called "Join", an all digital platform.

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Kre-hälsa Dalarna

Cre-health is one of the results from a project about culture and health as a possibility to broaden the market for entrepreneurs within the field of the cultural and creative industry. The 10-12 participants who are unemployed or on long-term sick leave gathers 10 times; 2 times within 5 different art-fields: voice, movement, photo/film, drama and painting. A project leader participates in all ten meetings and a certified artist works with the group twice. The project trains the artists to work for the project: culture and health related topics with theoretical and practical views.

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