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To make cultural initiatives really inclusive, to better understand and develop the publics, not only in numbers, but diversifying and involving them. It is on this key issue that focuses ADESTE Audience DEveloper: Skills and Training in Europe, a new European project promoted by Melting Pro in partnership with national and international organizations, co-funded by the EU under the Lifelong Learning Programme – Leonardo da Vinci Development of Innovation.

ADESTE stems from the need to fill a gap in the education and training paths, by promoting the development of a new professional profile for the European cultural and creative sector, with specific expertise related to audience development and engagement. The definition and certification of a cultural professional in charge of promoting innovative approaches to analyse, develop, retain audiences, is intended as a practical response to the need of new organizational and sustainability models for cultural organizations.

Starting in November 2013 for a time period of 30 months, Melting Pro and the other ADESTE partners will be engaged in various activities:

  • mapping of best practices and strategies for analysis and involvement of audiences;
  • development of a database of professionals in the field;
  • research and development of competency models for cultural workers specialized in audience development;
  • identification and certification of a new European professional profile linked to the development of publics for arts and culture;
  • development of non-formal learning methods, to be tested at European level.

The expected results are a series of innovative training packages, which can be adopted and promoted by the ADESTE partners and other stakeholders in the sector. Each project phase will be monitored and evaluated in its results, a process based on ECVET (the European credit system for vocational education and training) to ensure the transferability of outputs at European level.

The ADESTE partnership consists of 9 organizations from 5 European countries and 2 from Third countries, USA and India. Besides Melting Pro, another organization from Italy will be the project leader and coordinator, the Fitzcarraldo Foundation. The other European partners are: Institute of Leisure Studies – Bilbao (ES); ENCATC – Brussels (BE); The Audience Agency – London (UK); the Danish Centre for Arts and Interculture – Copenhagen (DK); the ICCE, Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship of Goldsmiths, University of London (UK).

Our international partners are the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (USA) and the India Foundation for the Arts, Bangalore (INDIA).

Contact: Giulia Fiaccarini g.fiaccarini@meltingpro.org, Antonia Silvaggi a.silvaggi@meltingpro.org

#ADESTE on Twitter and Facebook.