ORTAKLAŞA SUB-GRANT PROGRAMME’S FIRST CALL FOR PROPOSALS IS NOW OPEN!

Implemented by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (İKSV) with the support of the European Union and in partnership with Culture Action Europe (CAE) and collaboration with the Marmara Municipalities Union (MBB), the Ortaklaşa: Culture, Dialogue and Support Programme’s first Call for Proposals of the 2026-2029 period has been launched. 

The call made within the scope of the Ortaklaşa Sub-Grant Programme aims to strengthen the dialogue and fair cultural cooperations between municipalities and civil society organisations (CSOs) active in the field of arts and culture in Türkiye. 

Which projects will be supported?

The Ortaklaşa Call for Project Proposals will support projects developed in collaboration of municipalities and CSOs working in the field of arts and culture, and which contribute to participatory and inclusive local cultural policies. The call is open to projects that focus on various types of efforts ranging from activities to influence processes of policy development in the field of arts and culture to artistic production and participatory cultural events.

The program will support projects that draw on the local needs, strengthen the civil society’s participation in decision-making process, and are centred on the transformative effect of arts and culture, such as:

• Cultural planning efforts that employ a strategic and holistic approach to create local cultural policies,
• Practices that encourage innovative models of cultural management,
• Art and culture projects from different disciplines that adopt the rights-based approach,
• Projects where a cultural space is transformed and functionalised or existing spaces are renovated and opened to participatory models through the expertise of CSOs. 

Who can apply?

Eligibility requirements for the organisations applying to the open call are as follows: 

• Must be a nonprofit civil society organisation with legal identity founded in Türkiye (Associations, foundations, cooperatives), 
• Its main field of activity must be arts and culture, 
• Must carry out the project in partnership with at least one municipality,
• Must carry out the project activities in Türkiye. 

What is the project duration and budget? 

The supported projects will be implemented for a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 12 months. The projects selected within the scope of the grant-programme will receive a financial support between 60,000 and 120,000 euros.

Application calendar:

Start of the open call: 17 March 2026

Online briefing session: 27 March 2026

Online Q&A session: 17 April 2026

Submission deadline: 18 May 2026, at 17.00

Online briefing sessions: 

An online briefing session on the Ortaklaşa Sub-Grant Programme’s first Call for Project Proposals will be organised on 27 March Friday at 11.00. Additionally, a question-answer session will be held on 17 April Friday at 11.00 for the organisations who wish to apply. Detailed information regarding these meetings will be available on Ortaklaşa website and social media accounts.

What do we have in the new phase of Ortaklaşa? 

As part of the Ortaklaşa Sub-Grant Programme, three separate calls will be made during the period of 2026–2029:

Two separate Ortaklaşa Calls for Project Proposals that support CSO-municipality cooperations in Türkiye and one Call for International Cultural Cooperation that encourages partnerships between Türkiye and Europe.

Representatives of the projects supported within the scope of the program will become members of the Ortaklaşa community and also benefit from at least 12 hours of mentorship support.