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Training for the Contact Zone (TCZ)

Training for the Contact Zone (TCZ) is a European initiative dedicated to rethinking adult education with a special focus on museums and heritage learning. Its overarching mission is to strengthen European cohesion by fostering dialogue and promoting shared cultural understanding.

“Unlearning – Cultural Mediation Practices” is an in-person course aimed at developing strategies for the creation and mediation of cultural spaces and projects that are fairer, more representative, and more accessible.

Especially aimed at professionals* and students working in the cultural, social, and educational fields, this free training** will have a total duration of 32 hours*** and will take place in Porto. The training will be conducted in Portuguese.

This training, promoted by PELE in Portugal, is carried out within the framework of the European project Training Contact Zone, which is being implemented in seven countries throughout 2025 and 2026. It focuses on the concept of the Contact Zone as a cultural and social space where different (and sometimes opposing) perspectives, experiences, and narratives are brought into contact, coexistence, and dialogue.In the current context, Contact Zones prove to be increasingly relevant and urgent by: (1) challenging dominant narratives and amplifying voices that are usually silenced or more marginalized; (2) encouraging multivocality; (3) promoting empathy and understanding among diverse groups and communities; (4) stimulating processes of repair and re-signification of collective memory; (5) activating dialogue, creative experimentation, and participation with underrepresented communities and groups.

The training is structured around six thematic modules:

  • Introduction to “Contact Zones”: Contexts and Practices
  • Tensions and Opportunities in Cultural Heritage (tangible and intangible)
  • Participation and Cultural Democracy
  • Tools for Cultural Mediation
  • Collective Narratives: Memory, representation, and re-signification
  • Creative Practices for Reflection and Evaluation

The application period for this training will be open from January 14 to February 14 and applications can be submitted by completing this form.

After this period, applications will be selected based on the motivation letter submitted and an analysis of the CV. Diversity and plurality will be valued in terms of age, gender, ethnic background, socio-economic context, and physical or functional condition.

The admission and selection process will be carried out by the PELE team. Within the scope of this call, no requests for reconsideration of decisions are foreseen, nor will comments or scores resulting from the evaluation of applications be disclosed.

Training dates:
In-person sessions: March 4 (6:00–8:00 pm), March 5 (10:00 am–5:00 pm), March 6 (10:00 am–5:00 pm), March 12 (10:00 am–5:00 pm), March 13 (10:00 am–5:00 pm), March 14 (10:00 am–2:00 pm)
Online session: March 19 (6:00–8:00 pm)

* employed and unemployed
** certification pending confirmation
*** 2 hours online and 30 hours in person

About the project

TCZ will develop and test training materials for professionals, artists, cultural mediators, staff, and volunteers in the heritage sector. Our aim is to equip cultural practitioners with new skills in participatory and intercultural approaches, enabling them to create more inclusive, engaging, and future-oriented practices.

The TCZ project brings together a diverse partnership of organisations across Europe:

  • Culture Action Europe (BE) – Networking & knowledge sharing
  • Conexiones improbables (ES) – Curriculum development & pilot in Vitoria
  • Etz Hayyim Synagogue (GR) – Training on interculturality
  • Goethe-Institut (RO) – Communication & pilot in Bucharest
  • Humán Platform (HU) – Training on post-communism
  • PELE (PT) – Training on post-colonialism
  • H 401 (NL) – Project management & pilot in Amsterdam


TCZ empowers cultural and heritage staff to create new forms of activities that strengthen cultural belonging. Through innovative curricula and training, it enhances professionals’ knowledge, skills, and confidence, helping them to:

  • Develop dialogue-based approaches;
  • Co-create narratives with communities;
  • Explore dynamic new ways of presenting heritage—from virtual storytelling to participatory projects across Europe.


TCZ builds on the experience of the Heritage Contact Zone (HCZ) project (2018–2020), funded under the European Year of Cultural Heritage. One of HCZ’s major outcomes—the HCZ Toolkit, a free online handbook—laid the groundwork for this new initiative.


Training for the Contact Zone is co-funded by the European Union within the framework of Erasmus+ Adult Education.

Training for the Contact Zones in Practice: Cultural Democracy, Dialogue, and Structural Change

2–3 December 2025
Goethe-Institut Bucharest

This international conference explored how cultural and heritage work can respond to Europe’s current challenges: growing political polarization, the shrinking of civic and cultural spaces, and declining trust in democratic processes.
Drawing on the concept of the Contact Zone—spaces where different identities and perspectives meet—the event highlighted the role of dialogue and cultural mediation in fostering mutual understanding, inclusive participation, and collective action.
The conference presented the results of the Training for the Contact Zone project (FZC / TCZ), which developed and tested a curriculum designed to equip professionals with practical tools to engage with complexity and difference.

At the same time, the conference symbolized both the culmination of a year of transnational collaboration and the starting point for new collaborative actions among the various partners that make up the consortium.