Global Cultural Relations is pleased to announce that the Heinrich Böll Stiftung* (Germany) and Kultura Nova Foundation** (Croatia) are joining the initiative alongside the Institut français, the Goethe-Institut and AFAC – the Arab Fund for Arts and Culture.

Different European and international stakeholders are today keen to contributing to the design and implementation of international cultural relations – from the public and private sectors, civil society actors to private foundations and networks. Therefore, and together we aim to help advance mutual understanding between Europe and the rest of the world and also foster recognition of new challenges in the field of international cultural relations.

*The Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung is a German political foundation affiliated with the German Green Party (Alliance 90/The Greens). Its primary task is political education and advocacy in Germany and abroad. Our main tenets are ecology and sustainability, democracy and human rights, non-violence and justice. In our work, we place particular emphasis on gender democracy, equal rights for minorities and the political and social participation of migrants. Our namesake, the writer and Nobel Prize laureate Heinrich Böll, personifies the fundamental principles we stand for: defence of freedom and human dignity, civic courage, open debate and the acknowledgement of art and culture as independent spheres of thought and action. As a think tank for green visions and ideas, we are part of an international network with more than 30 offices worldwide and with partner projects in more than 60 countries.

**Kultura Nova Foundation (Croatia) is a public foundation established in 2011 with the purpose to provide financial and professional support to Croatian civil society organizations (non-profit and non-governmental associations) in contemporary arts and culture. It works as grant-making and operation foundation through the Grants program and Research and Development program. Currently Kultura Nova provides grants for arts productions and distributions, independent cultural spaces (cinemas, theatres, galleries, cultural centres, etc.), mobility, artistic researches, collaborative platforms on local, national, and European levels, cultural participation, artistic and organizational memory, professionals development, and education in culture. Within the Development and Research area Kultura Nova conducts different research on cultural development and cultural policy, organizes a variety of educational programmes in cultural management and cultural policy fields, and participates in international projects. Kultura Nova is member of the following networks: Culture Action Europe – CAE, International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies – IFACCA, European Network on Cultural Management and Policy – ENCATC, and Philanthropy Europe Association – Philea.

Welcome on board!