Projects

The challenge

Cultural and creative sectors (CCS) play a unique role for inclusive and sustainable growth in the EU and beyond. At the same time, working in these sectors is highly influenced by new developments in society at large, bringing both new opportunities and challenges. The impact of artificial intelligence on cultural and creative production and distribution, greening of cultural practices, shifting geopolitical relations,…  push actors in the CCS to explore new work and business models, continuously developing innovative approaches and methodologies. Cultural and creative sectors and industries have also been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen their resilience in both the short and longer term, in view of disruptive crises as well as more fundamental societal transformations.

Creative FLIP – which stands for Finance, Learning, Innovation and Intellectual Property Rights – aims to build a stronger resilience of the cultural and creative sector, by further strengthening the overall CCS ecosystem and supporting the capacities of its actors in the areas of Finance, Learning/Skills, Innovation and Intellectual Property Rights.

The process & results

Creative FLIP started in 2019 as a Pilot project co-funded by the EU. Building on the achievements of its Pilot Phase (2019-2021), Creative FLIP continued the work as a Preparatory Action co-funded by the EU in 2021-2023. In the course of this project cycle, the consortium continued organizing activities supporting the CCS’ actors by improving access to finance, issuing recommendations for CCS skills classification, piloting innovative learning concepts & enhancing creative skills development, and boosting knowledge management in the field of IPR for the cultural and creative sectors.

The Creative FLIP project combines different methodologies to achieve its objectives and maximise the impact and outreach of its activities:

• Mapping, literature review, sectorial surveys, interviews and statistical analysis to gather data for a comprehensive understanding of the current ecosystem in which CCIs function in the four specific areas, allowing for the identification of recommendations to respond to the main challenges, based on the stakeholders inputs and existing good-practice examples;
• P2P exchanges, Learning Laboratories, and showcasing events allowing for an exchange of know-how and experience, boosting collaboration opportunities and testing out innovative cooperation methods;
• Stakeholder conferences and Interactive workshops to engage with stakeholders to validate the policy relevance of the project and to co-design and co-produce the research in order to achieve long-term impact and sustainability.

With the flagship CreativesUnite and the development of three online tools to support access to finance, and inform about working conditions and IPR, Creative FLIP is also continuously working on its resource platform, a one-stop-shop for the sector.

In the project, IDEA Consult was specifally responsible for all work related to access to finance, policy learning and transformational cultural policy development. Together with experts Sylvia Amann (Inforelais) and Joost Heinsius (Values of Culture & Creativity),

• we analysed and identified which role(s) policy makers can play in strengthening a model supporting framework for resilient CCS and formulate relevant recommendations in this respect, including an evaluation of measures related to working conditions and related policy recommendations.
• we developed an easy-to-use and tailored digital tool, called ‘So You Need Money’. The digital tool, integrated in the CreativesUnite platform, guides CCS actors to the most adapted funding sources at EU, national and regional level. The tool provides inspiration and tips on how to build a tailored financing mix.

The Creative FLIP Project is implemented by a consortium of partner organisations and individual experts, led by the Goethe-Institut. 

Visit the project website and CreativesUnite platform for further information about the project, relevant publications and tools.