Belarusian Council for Culture
Official logo
Legal notice
Registered since October 2020 on the territory of the EU (in Estonia under the name MTÜ Valgevene Kultuuri Assotsiatsioon) as a non-profit charitable organization, with the human rights defender status since May 2023.
In Belarus, by the decision of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, it was classified as an "extremist organization," and by the decision of the Partyzanski Court in Minsk, all pages and communities on social networks, materials, and initiatives of the Belarusian Cultural Council were labeled as "extremist materials." Additionally, one of our Telegram channels dedicated to the campaign #BelarusWithUkraine has been tagged as "extremist" as well.
Telegram t.me/radakultury
t.me/by_culture
Facebook facebook.com/bcsfbel
Instagram @by_culture
byculture.org
Twitter @radakultury
Youtube youtube.com/@byculture
Contacts:
resource@byculture.org
Online Resource Center
resource.byculture.org
press@byculture.org
Press inquiries, comments, experts
info@byculture.org
Other issues
Mission
The Belarusian Council for Culture, as a public institution, unites the efforts for reconstruction of a sustainable infrastructure for a new, free Belarusian culture.
The areas of interest include:
• Cultural policy;
• Cultural research and analysis;
• Fundraising for culture;
• Advocacy and lobbying for culture;
• Education in cultural management;
• Public relations and PR for culture.
A separate line of activity is providing consultation on matters related to personal assistance.
Strategic lines of work or what we do
Resource Center
Preserves and develops the creative potential of the nation and accumulates resources for the development of Belarusian culture and the reconstruction of a vibrant creative communication space.
Institute of Promotion or Cultural Diplomacy
Advocates and lobbies for culture in interactions with political centers, international structures, and civil society. Coordinates the global promotion of Belarusian culture,
integrating it into the world context.
Sojm or Coalition of Cultural Initiatives:
Unites cultural communities to define cultural policies and develop reforms.
What We Do Not Engage In:
• Event organization;
• Job searches and employment;
• Counter-propaganda;
• Renting, acquiring, and providing equipment for events.
However! As part of the Resource Center, we have opened a physical space in Vilnius –"Guesthouse", where you can organize your event, and we can also offer free rental of sound and lighting equipment.
What We Have Already Done (Selected Achievements):
Resource Center:
• Research and Analysis:
Started an analytical group that publishes quarterly analytical materials on the state of culture in various areas;
– Prepared an analysis of cultural policy models and financing mechanisms in the cultural sphere in Eastern European countries.
• Fundraising and increasing the potential of the cultural sphere:
– Opened a physical venue for the Resource Center – "Guesthouse", where meetings and events can be organized;
– Launched the Art Power program with the support of the European Union, providing 2 million euros of financial aid to Belarusian culture;
– Conducted the "Cultural Code" hackathon and established a networking platform for Belarusian culture workers and programmers;
– Implemented the "Magistrat" project, enabling participation in a community that supports projects important to it.
• Assistance to persecuted artists and cultural figures:
– Provided personal support to more than 750 cultural figures (financial, visa-related,
legal, medical, psychological assistance, job placement, and others) and supported the realization of over 150 creative projects (2020-2023).
– Provided financial and information support to:
– Over 30 solidarity concerts
17 live broadcasts of theatrical performances.
– Conducted 20 solidarity auctions to raise funds for persecuted Belarusian artists;
– Implemented the media project "Artists of Victory " with hundreds of materials and dozens of videos.
Institute of Promotion, or Cultural Diplomacy:
• In efforts to promote Belarusian culture, initiated and conducted several international campaigns and joint actions of Belarusians worldwide, such as:
– Celebrations of the Day of Belarusian Culture (July 7) including Days/Weeks of Belarusian Culture around this date (since 2021);
Organized the international event "The Night of Poets" in memory of the Belarusian writers executed in 1937 on October 29-30 (since 2021);
– Ran the media campaign #BelarusWithUkraine with a total reach of 3.2 million users in Ukrainian media and more than 4 million views of TikTok videos.
• The Belarusian Council for Culture actively participates in international conferences and discussions, conducts briefings for donor organizations, and advises partners in other countries (including participation in laying the groundwork to establish the Culture Fund of Moldova).
• Engaged in the work of the Consultative Group of Euronest Parliamentary Assembly on Belarus, the Forum of Civil Society of Eastern Partnership Countries, and maintaining longstanding contacts with diplomatic representations of several EU countries and the US.
Sojm or Coalition of Cultural Initiatives:
• Created the manifesto "More Than Culture", which expresses our vision for the development of Belarusian culture today. It became the basis for developing a roadmap for supporting culture.
• Collaborated with other cultural initiatives (Belarusian PEN, Institute of Books, Film Academy, Initiative Group of the Institute of National Memory) and cultural figures to develop a roadmap for cultural development and presented it in Brussels on May 11, 2023, during the SOM (Eastern Partnership Senior Officials Meeting). We have received positive feedback from DG NEAR, and we are preparing for further negotiations with the European Commission and EU member states.
• Facilitated the creation of networks and coalitions of cultural figures. With our
assistance, two professional associations were established, and several organizations received institutional financial support.
What we plan to do next (top priority ideas): Resource Center
• We will continue our efforts to attract resources for the support and development of Belarusian culture:
Cooperate with the European Commission (EC) on the development and support roadmap for culture.
– Develop concepts for national sponsorship of cultural spheres.
– Work on establishing a club of patrons of Belarusian culture.
Continue our work towards master’s programs.
• To enhance the competencies of cultural managers:
– Collaborate with partners from Belarus and Sweden to launch a pilot educational course "School of Art Management" in 2024.
Design a media platform that informs about funding, educational, and professional opportunities for Belarusian cultural workers.
Institute of Promotion, or Cultural Diplomacy:
• Developing the direction of cultural diplomacy and working towards the establishment of the Belarusian Promotion Institute.
• Organizing global international events such as "The Night of Poets" (around October 29) and "Culture Day" (around July 7).
• Conducting a campaign to defend copyright in Belarus and advocating for the exclusion of the regime representatives from the World Intellectual Property Organization.
Sojm or Coalition of Cultural Initiatives:
As part of the development and implementation of an effective cultural policy relevant to Belarusians, we plan to:
• Continue working towards the establishment of the Assembly of Belarusian Culture and facilitate the creation of networks and coalitions of cultural workers. In autumn
2023, we plan to hold the first conference that will lay the foundation for the Coalition of Cultural Initiatives.
• Collaborate with partners from five countries in the Eastern Partnership to address the issue of cultural decolonization of the region. We are preparing two workshops on this topic. On a practical level, we intend to continue the advocacy campaign for Belarus, #art_born_Belarus, advocating for the return of the Belarusian origin to renowned cultural figures.
• Continue the networking efforts between cultural workers and representatives from the IT industry through the "Cultural Code" project.
• Sustain and improve our work on monitoring and organizing information about repressions against cultural figures, conducting solidarity campaigns with political prisoners associated with culture.