Research into trust-based funding of the Culture

About (supporting) the Culture

The Culture is a world of makers, collectives, diasporic communities and cultural networks. Within it, disciplines frequently intersect, informal structures play an important role, and culture is closely interwoven with everyday life and community. In short, these are interdisciplinary cultural practices.

Through our existing grant schemes, we already support many initiatives that enable interdisciplinary cultural practice. At the same time, we see that certain makers, networks and communities are less well reached. Existing working methods also do not always align with the daily practice of everyone active in interdisciplinary work within the cultural field.

Trust-based funding

As funds, we want our way of funding to better align with practice, and with the groups and communities it concerns. That is why we are researching a different approach to support: trust-based funding. We are making the funding process simpler, more accessible and more firmly grounded in trust. We are also testing a way of working in which trust, equality, relationship-building and shared ownership play a central role.

Learning and researching together

We are investigating which working methods better align with the interdisciplinary artistic practice of makers and communities. To do this, we are working together with six participating organisations: Ballroom Works (Utrecht), Culture Capsule (Groningen), Kool Cult (Heerlen), LFMC (Amsterdam), Orisun Studio (The Hague), and The FemDem (Enschede). In putting together this group, we considered spread across regions, disciplines, organisational forms and communities, as well as a balanced representation of the target groups of both funds.

Throughout the research, the participating partners will each receive €50,000 per year to take part in the process and to work from a basis of participatory decision-making or a trust-based approach. They will actively share their experiences and insights. Within shared research questions and learning objectives, they will decide for themselves how to shape these working methods in their own practice. The experience gained will be used to build understanding of what works, which challenges arise, and which lessons may be relevant for future instruments and working methods.

Part of a wider exploration

The research builds on the pilot Trust-based Funding of (Intangible) Heritage Communities by the Cultural Participation Fund. Wherever possible, the two research projects will be linked, so that knowledge, research questions and experiences can reinforce one another.

The research also forms part of the wider exploration being carried out by the six national cultural funds. Central to this is the question of how funds and their funding instruments can better align with the diverse interdisciplinary artistic practices of makers, institutions, networks and communities that are currently less well reached. From 2026 to 2028, the funds will gather and share experiences, insights and lessons. The knowledge gained will contribute to the further development of the funds' working methods and instruments.