“Contact Zones in Practice”: Conference in Bucharest Promotes Dialogue and Cultural Democracy in Europe

On 2 and 3 December 2025, the Goethe-Institut Bucharest will host the conference “Contact Zones in Practice – A Training Model for Cultural Democracy, Dialogue, and Structural Change”, a European gathering dedicated to reflecting on the role of culture and heritage in building more inclusive, participatory, and democratic societies.

At a time when Europe faces growing challenges — from political polarisation to the shrinking of civic and cultural spaces and increasing distrust in democratic institutions — this initiative offers a practical approach to strengthening cultural democracy and intercultural dialogue.

The conference is based on the idea of the Contact Zone: a physical, social, or symbolic space where people with different experiences, identities, and perspectives come together. These encounters, though sometimes challenging, create unique opportunities for mutual understanding, shared power, and collective meaning-making.

The Training for the Contact Zone (TCZ) project brings together partners from seven European countries with diverse institutional profiles, with the goal of developing a practical curriculum that provides cultural professionals with tools for mediation and dialogue in complex contexts. The methodologies presented promote inclusive participation and encourage communities and institutions to engage constructively with difference.

Over the two days of the conference, participants will have the opportunity to reflect on the rise of polarisation and anti-democratic trends in Europe and to explore the TCZ curriculum as a tested model of participatory practice. Discussions will also focus on ways to strengthen cultural democracy, civic engagement, and intercultural exchange, as well as on how to translate these methodologies into structural change and more inclusive cultural policies.

More than a metaphor, the concept of the Contact Zone invites a rethinking of how we relate to difference, heritage, and power structures. By equipping professionals and institutions with critical and creative tools, the TCZ project contributes to a more participatory and diversity-sensitive model of cultural governance.

The Bucharest conference represents both a moment of reflection and a point of departure. It will share the results of a year of transnational collaboration in which the TCZ approach was developed, tested, and refined, while also opening space for dialogue between practice and policy-making.

The event is aimed at professionals in the fields of arts, culture, education, and heritage, as well as policymakers, mediators, and artists interested in exploring how cultural spaces can function as contact zones — not as places where differences are erased, but where they are acknowledged and transformed into something shared.

Participation is free of charge, upon prior registration, and places are limited. The full programme will be announced soon.

This conference paves the way for the June 2026 TCZ meeting in Brussels, where the project’s outcomes will be presented as part of a policy proposal for democratic and inclusive cultural governance in Europe. The Bucharest event thus represents a key step in building this shared vision, bringing together experiences, practices, and reflections that aim to inspire cultural policies rooted in participation and dialogue.

More information: https://trainingcontactzone.eu/conference/