TANDEM - Cultural Managers Exchange Programme Turkey
The TANDEM Cultural Managers Exchange programme between Turkey and the European Union supports the establishment of long-term partnerships between cultural institutions from Turkey and the countries of the EU. Together with their respective institutions, the participating cultural managers are involved in an active process of cooperation that allows reciprocal job shadowing, implementation of an interdisciplinary project and an exchange of experiences on an equal footing. TANDEM is run by Stiftung Mercator (Essen) and the European Cultural Foundation (Amsterdam) in cooperation with MitOst (Berlin) and Anadolu Kültür (Istanbul).
During the course of one year, 15 cultural managers/project coordinators from Turkey and 15 from different EU countries join up to form 15 internationally cooperating tandems. During this period, participants spend time working in their respective partner organization, which allows them to learn more about the new cultural environment of their cooperation partner. These stays also allow a cultural project or a co-production to be jointly planned and implemented. In addition to these exchange visits, the entire TANDEM group meets several times during the year to share experiences and knowledge about the themes of international cooperation and intercultural project management. Participants receive expert support from those in charge of the programme throughout the process, and take part in intensive training courses.
The programme is geared not only to cultural managers and project coordinators from independent cultural institutions who are just beginning their careers, but also to professional cultural managers with experience of international project work and an interest in long-term cooperation. The participants should be well-connected at their respective local levels and have a good command of English.
TANDEM is designed as a in-service qualification programme that strengthens the leadership and professional skills of both Turkish and European cultural managers in their roles as cultural mediators.
TANDEM offers:
- Work placements in the partner organizations (in Turkey and the countries of the EU)
- Training modules and expert advice/support from qualified trainers during co-productions
- Co-production subsidies of up to 5,500 euros
- Reimbursement of travel costs and additional subsistence costs during work placements
The programme’s main activities are as follows:
- Participation in a partner forum in Turkey (May 2013)
- Participation in a kick-off meeting in Germany (September 2013)
- Reciprocal work placements for the tandem partners in Turkey and the EU countries (between September 2013 and August 2014)
- Interim meetings and training in Europe (April 2014)
- Final meeting in Turkey/Europe (September 2014)
Objectives
The programme’s objective is to establish successful long-term cooperation between cultural organizations and cultural managers from Turkey and the EU countries, and to bring about an integrative symbolic impact in the tandems’ environments. 15 cultural organizations from Turkey and 15 cultural organizations from the EU countries take part in a one-year development process, during the course of which they form 15 Turkish-European “tandems”.