Culture in danger

15-17 October
Silandro, Italy

RECOVERY,

Coorganised with:
With the support of:

Photo and Video galleries

DAY.1

DAY.2

DAY.3

Photo and Video galleries

DAY.1

Porto Innovation Hub
& UPTEC Baixa

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Video gallery

DAY.2

Palácio dos
Correios

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Video gallery

DAY.3

UPTEC Baixa &
Dinamo10 Creative Hub

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Video gallery
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ECHN HUBs Meetup

Culture in Danger

Recovery - Resilience - Resistance,
Cultural support platforms in times of crisis

15-17 October 2025
Silandro, Italy

This year ECHN HUBs Meetup is organised by the European Creative Hubs Network with the support of BASIS Vinschgau Venosta, our hosting hub in Silandro.

Today, cultural and creative structures, especially creative hubs, are navigating a rapidly shifting and increasingly fragile landscape. These spaces, long marked by precarity, are now confronting a convergence of internal pressures and external disruptions: rising real estate costs, tenuous relationships with public authorities, policy ambiguity, and the broader consequences of global crises such as the pandemic, war, and sociopolitical instability. These challenges not only threaten the operational continuity of hubs but also undermine their role as essential infrastructures for civic life, artistic experimentation, and local resilience.

In this context, creative hubs must reimagine how they operate. The triple lens of Recovery, Resilience, and Resistance offers a framework for transformative action. Recovery speaks to the urgent need to restore disrupted practices and rebuild cultural ecosystems. Resilience demands the development of long-term strategies and capacities to withstand future shocks. Resistance highlights the importance of advocacy, solidarity, and the assertion of cultural value in the face of marginalisation and displacement.

To move forward, hubs must shift positionalities, form new coalitions, and build capacities for collective action. Through cross-sectoral partnerships, institutional negotiation, and community-rooted advocacy, they can reposition themselves not just as cultural actors, but as vital agents in shaping urban, social, and economic futures.

A central theme of the conference is how cultural and hybrid creative spaces can be developed and secured within speculative or volatile environments. Drawing from the experience of BASIS and other international cases, we will explore how uncertainty and instability, rather than being purely obstructive, can be reimagined as catalysts for innovation, experimentation, and social change.

This gathering also asks: how do we cultivate agility and adaptability as sustainable strategies? What tools and capacities are needed to engage with public authorities and private stakeholders? How can international networks reinforce local voices in policy discussions and ensure access to cultural infrastructure in contested urban environments?

By addressing these questions, Recovery, Resilience, and Resistance aims to generate practical insights, build solidarity, and offer a renewed sense of shared purpose. The event serves as a strong expression of international support for BASIS and similar initiatives, highlighting the importance of securing cultural spaces and recognising their role as engines of creativity, inclusion, and democratic renewal.

Photo Gallery

Register

for in-person participation in the BAU TOPIA 4
day 1
day 2
DAY 3

Agenda

The program is in local time zone (CET)

ECHN HUBs Meetup DAY 1
Wednesday, 15 October 2025

MORNING

AFTERNOON

Location: BASIS Vinschgau Venosta | Room

Drusus-Kaserne/Caserma Druso
Kortscher Straße 97/Via Corzes 97
39028 Schlanders/Silandro

17:00REGISTRATION
17:30-17:50
Welcome Words


Andrea Giotti
, CEO of DumBO | Giorgia Boldrini, Cultural Sector Municipality of Bologna

Informal Introduction to the programme

Rita Cortes, ECHN

17:50-18:10
Kick-off Speech
Sustainability in Europe
Climate Challenges for European Cities 

Anna-Lisa Boni, Deputy Mayor for EU/Recovery funds, climate mission 2030: neutrality and transition, international relations

18:10-18:30
Inspirational Speech #1
Social Sustainability in the CCS
It was yesterday! 

“Sustainability was Yesterday. We need to build a new cultural framework for the ’20s.”

Bertram Niessen, Scientific director of the cultural association cheFare, PhD UrbEur – European Studies in Urban and Local Sociology

18:30
Welcome Cocktail & Speed Networking 
ECHN HUBs Meetup DAY 2

Thursday, 16 October 2025

MORNING

Location: BASIS Vinschgau Venosta | Room

Drusus-Kaserne/Caserma Druso
Kortscher Straße 97/Via Corzes 97
39028 Schlanders/Silandro

 

09:30-10:30
WELCOME COFFEE
Tour of BASIS.
Join the BASIS team for a guided tour of the hub and discover the highlights of their journey over the past years!
10:30-11:00
INSPIRATIONAL KEYNOTE
Cross Innovation – Cultural and creative industries as drivers for the green, digital and social transition

There is no doubt that the cultural and creative industries have the potential and ability to play a key role in transforming our society. But what kind of framework is needed to empower the cultural and creative stakeholders in this context?

Jenny Kornmacher

 
11:00-11:30

COFFEE BREAK

 
11:30-13:30
BREAK-OUT ACTIVITIES 

1- Reshaping the creative industries: A power shift back to the artists

How new technological trends can usher in a RenAIssance age 3.0? A legal, technical and philosophical perspective on how new technologies can be utilised to give ownership & control back to the artists while also introduce new business models for the creative institutions. In other words, technology that can protect copyrights & revenue streams through transparent frameworks which will be absolutely necessary in an age when digitalisation & AI is challenging the creative markets.
With Sara and Samer Awayez, Wyz Law Group

2- Night School: sustainability & night culture (presentation + open talk)

Five of Europe’s leading nightlife specialists team up to present NightSchool: An EU wide training programme designed to support night culture producers early in their career. This transnational education programme will focus on environmental, social, and economic sustainability.
With Tiago Prata and Anna Hilber

3- Social Impact Canvas for creative change makers (workshop)

With a research-based intuitive tool, The Social Impact Canvas, you can improve value statements to financiers, create incentives for public funding, attract an audience, and spread awareness on important topics. With The Social Impact Canvas, you’ll define the specific social impact of your work, not only the commonly pressing injustices, such as climate change, human rights, or the education gap but rather social impact as you define it. The Impact Canvas also helps you to consider how to measure and understand the impact, how to find adequate measurement instruments, and how to consider different kinds of data as part of cultural work.
With Pille Pruulman Vengerfeldl

4- Communitive: Play the Rethink card game! (workshop)

Get to know a playful project that explores 35 initiatives and communities of Malmö and explore the concept of “Communitives”. In this playful breakout session we will introduce you to a special c ollaboration in cities: a network of communitives. Following a brief introduction to the concept; you will get the chance to play the Rethink card game in smaller groups and come up with creative solutions to challenging problems. Expect interactive games, non-formal learning and inspiring conversations.

With Sára Bányai and Alanna Piquet

13:30-15:00
Lunch & Networking

AFTERNOON

15:00-17:00
FERAL WALK, walking workshop
What can nonhuman species and elements tell us about the development and future of Malmö? How can we take stories of ecology to help us realize better futures of coexistence in cities? The feral walk will bring participants through three showcase districts of Malmö to look at how different influences and ecologies there have shaped the past, present, and future of city living. Participants will be invited to draw comparisons between Malmö urban ecological connections in their own city and how creativity can bring social-ecological relationships more broadly.

https://feral.design/

Inna Zrajaeva and John Kazior, designers and founders of FERAL – a design agency focusing on Ecology and art

18:00-19:30
Drinks at the City Council
Welcome words

By Janne Grönholm, Mayor of Culture, City of Malmö

Statues or To-Stand?

By Nya Rörelsen:
Majula Drammeh, Khamlane Halsackda, Nidia Martinéz Barbieri, Daniel Jeremiah Persson

‘Statues or To-Stand?’ is a work that enters the Culture of Memory to renegotiate the ways in which a monument can represent human life. The work is performed as an open installation that can be viewed from any position in the space, and the audience is invited to come and go at their own pace.

Location: Malmö City Hall, Kompanigatan 5, 211 34

  
ECHN HUBs Meetup DAY 3

Friday, 17 October 2025

MORNING

Location: BASIS Vinschgau Venosta | Room

Drusus-Kaserne/Caserma Druso
Kortscher Straße 97/Via Corzes 97
39028 Schlanders/Silandro

Side Event

10:00-10:30

MORNING COFFEE AND INFORMAL NETWORKING

10:30-12:30

ECHN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

(ECHN MEMBERS ONLY)

&

OPEN SPACE NETWORKING

(ALL OTHERS)

 

 

Keynote speaker:

text text text.

Special event | Visit to Lottozero in Prato

photo credit: Lottozero 

 

Timișoara: European Capital of Culture

Timișoara – Creative Hubs in the 2023 European Capital of Culture

Timișoara, as the European capital of culture for the year 2023, places the focus on strengthening the sense of community in the city. Boosting the confidence of its citizens to  actively participate in the cultural production of their local communities is among the main objectives of the ECC institution this year. In this regard, Timisoara’s vibrant community of creative hubs leads the way into a common creative future. 

 

 

Organisers

BASIS Vinschgau Venosta, located in the repurposed Drusus barracks in Silandro, South Tyrol, is a dynamic hub for social innovation and creativity. Founded to transform a historically significant site into a community-centered space, BASIS combines business, education, culture, and social engagement. Its mission is to foster sustainable regional development by empowering individuals and groups to actively shape their local environment. A key feature of BASIS is its focus on inclusivity and collaboration. By fostering cross-generational and cross-sectoral exchanges, the hub builds bridges between diverse perspectives, creating fertile ground for innovation. BASIS revitalizes the region by blending tradition with modernity, offering a platform for education, experimentation, and sustainable development.

https://basis.space/en/

The European Creative Hubs Network is a peer-led network with a mission to enhance the creative, economic and social impact of hubs around Europe and neighbouring countries. As focal points for creative professionals and businesses, hubs offer the most effective way to support the growth and development of cultural and creative industries. The European Creative Hubs Network Project activated a program coordinated by ECHN for the members of its network. This project has been funded since 2021 by Creative Europe, as one of the European networks supporting the cultural and creative sector.

ECHN

The program aims at empowering creative hubs as main focal points for creative professionals and businesses. The central fronts of action include mobility opportunities for hub managers and community members, learning exchanges and workshops, advocacy at local and European level and academic research to highlight the role of creative hubs within the cultural and creative industries.

www.creativehubs.net

With the support of

Speakers

Matteo Lepore

Mayor of Bologna

Andrea Giotti

CEO of DumBO

Anna-Lisa Boni

Deputy Mayor for EU/Recovery funds, climate mission 2030

Bertram Niessen

Scientific director of the cultural association cheFare

Giorgia Boldrini

Cultural Sector Municipality of Bologna

Dubravka Jurisic

Creative FLIP

Ivan Lopez Garrido

Board of Directors ECHN

Mara Polloni

DumBO

Martina Aiazzi-Mancini

Cultural activities Coordinator, LAMA Impresa Sociale

Dario Marmo

Project Manager and Associate, LAMA Impresa Sociale

Roman Luterbacher

artist, LEEFWERK

Cristina Maurelli

co-founder of Bold Stories

Giuditta Rossi

co-founder of Bold Stories

Name

Title

Joost Heinsius

Senior Expert, Goethe-Institut

Isabelle De Voldere

Senior Expert, IDEA Consult

Eveline Durinck

Senior Consultant, IDEA Consult

Leekei Tang

Founder of ALOE development

Pille Pruulman Vengerfeldl

Professor in media and communication, University of Malmö

Konstantina Douka

University of Bologna

Raquel Traba Galisteo

CEO of TRIPLE

Marta Lovato

sustainability manager of Santarcangelo Festival

Ville Kurki

Technical manager, Koy Kaapelitalo

Neda Tozija

co-founder of TransfoLAB

Elena Polivtseva

Independent Researcher

Sylvia Amann

Senior Policy Expert

Gonçalo Guiomar

Research Fellow, ETH AI Center, Zürich

Vassilis Charalampidis

President of the Board of Directors, ECHN

Joana Carvalho

Hub Director, Dinamo 10

Fátima São Simão

Development Strategist, Dinamo 10

Martin Q Larson

Subtopia

Tessa Moroder

Co-founder and CEO, Lottozero

European Creative Hubs Network /
Pireos 84, 104 35 Athens Greece /
+30 210 3425335 /
info@creativehubs.net