Untitled - Narodowe Centrum Kultury

tytuł artykułu 27
It is difficult to work single-handedly
in culture. Cultural institutions don’t
exist in a vacuum, but in a network
of social and cultural relationships.
Cultural projects, large and small,
require not only collaboration with
partners but also close ties with the
surrounding community. To implement
them we need partners – sometimes
a few, often more than ten or twenty.
A good experience with project partnerships paves the way for
longer-lasting cooperation in the form of other joint projects or strategic
partnerships.
strategic partnerships
These include not only actions necessary to carry out individual projects
but also permanent collaboration based on common goals. Strategic
partnerships last longer than project partnerships and involve
actions taken to achieve goals set by the partners.
Strategic partnerships within the field of culture are rare.
Much more often they are cross-sector partnerships, such as those
designed to promote a region, tourism, safety or solutions to social
issues. In such arrangements, partners from different sectors share
clearly defined areas of operation. Typically, all partners in a strategic
partnership have equal status and act together. Their activities
may focus on general issues, legal solutions, industry or local
policies and on implementing a jointly developed strategy. The best
example of a partnership pursuing a common strategy are local action
groups.
Another example is coalition partnership, a model that has
recently been gaining ground in Poland. Coalitions bring together
institutions and organisations from various industries in order
to undertake a specific, usually short-term, action. Despite varying
interests and goals, they unite, since joint action allows them to
meet the needs of all coalition partners. One example of such coalitions
are joint efforts of different organisations to change the national
or local legislation, procedures and solutions unfavourable to
coalition partners.
Another are formal and informal organisations that engage
in the debate on cultural policies in Poland. This leads to the formation
of independent civil movements, e.g. the Committee for Radical
Cultural Change (Poznań); European Area of Culture Consortium,
Szczecin 2016; Warsaw 2020 Initiative, a coalition of artists, activists
and cultural managers who advocate change in Warsaw’s cultural policy;
and 2010 Culture Citizens.
cross-sector partnerships
Nowadays cultural activities are not the sole domain of public cultural
institutions run by the central government or local authorities. Citizens
– including artists, culture animators and activists – work for
non-profit organisations, associations and foundations.
Culture is also part of the private sector. Companies operating
in the cultural field make up the creative industry. Representatives
of all three sectors can appreciate and use their unique potentials:
the permanence, continuity and infrastructure of the public sector;
the dynamism, passion and willingness for voluntary action of the
social sector; and the capital resources and market skills of the private
sector. Local partnerships are often impossible without the support
of the Church and other religious organisations that bond local
communities.
To be efficient, cross-sector partnership must be complete and
complementary. One example of cross-sector partnership is plaza24.pl.
Operated from Płaza, a small village in Chrzanów District, Lesser Poland
Province, this online venture involves the most prominent public
and private sector players, including the village administrator, the local
school, the parish, two associations, a sports club, health centre,
beekeeping farm, welfare home, voluntary fire brigade and kindergarten.
The leader’s mantle was taken up by a public library.
what forms can cultural partnerships take
Formalised project partnerships typically involve partnership agreements
for specific projects. Parties to the agreements are legal entities:
cultural institutions, NGOs, businesses. One of the parties takes
the leader role, and the parties define their roles, responsibilities and
rights, financial terms, third party liability, the period of the agreement,
and settlement of disputes.
An example of formalised cross-sector partnership is a partnership
formed in Szczecin to mark the Year of Chopin in 2010 as
part of the project Beyond Time and Space (funded by the Ministry
of Culture and National Heritage, the city of Szczecin and from
the partners’ own resources). Partners included the Mieczysław
Karłowicz Philharmonic in Szczecin, Szczecin Artistic Agency, 13
Muses Club Community Centre, Szczecin 2016 and the following
NGOs: Artelier Foundation, Boogie Brain Association of Cultural