Position Paper 2026

What We Stand For.

Berlin needs culture not as decoration, but as part of its social infrastructure. We Are Berlin e.V. understands culture as a space where people of different origins, experiences, and perspectives can interact with each other. Art, music, fashion, crafts, club culture, social initiatives, and new forms of cultural production are not isolated areas. Together, they shape the city.

Our position paper articulates the principles according to which we develop projects, enter into collaborations, and understand public responsibility.

Culture Needs Spaces.

A city that educates and attracts creative people must provide them with opportunities to work in that city. This includes physical spaces as well as public visibility, production opportunities, knowledge, networks, and access to cultural structures.

Cooperation Instead of Parallel Structures.

Berlin has an extraordinary number of associations, initiatives, artists, collectives, universities, cultural institutions, and independent projects. The problem is often not a lack of ideas. It is a lack of connections.

We Are Berlin e.V. therefore does not want to replace any existing structure. The association wants to connect actors, bundle competencies, and enable cooperation where individual organizations alone encounter structural limits.

Culture and Democracy Belong Together.

Cultural participation creates public discourse. Where people can jointly design, discuss, and take responsibility, social participation emerges. Therefore, for us, the promotion of art and culture and the promotion of democratic opinion-forming belong together.

The association is politically and denominationally neutral. However, for us, neutrality does not mean social indifference. Tolerance, international understanding, democratic cooperation, and civic engagement are explicitly part of our statutory mission.

Berlin Is International.

Berlin is shaped by migration, cultural exchange, and international networks. The European idea, remembrance culture, and transnational cooperation are therefore among the foundations of our work. We want to enable projects where Berlin actors work together with people and organizations from other cities and countries and learn from each other.

Young Talent Needs Perspective.

Artistic and creative education alone is not enough. Those who educate young people for design, music, art, crafts, or other creative professions must simultaneously discuss the conditions under which they can then work. Berlin needs not only talent. Berlin must create conditions under which talent can stay, produce, and develop its own structures.

Public Space Is Part of the City's Culture.

Streets, squares, and public places are not just traffic areas. They are places of social encounter. We Are Berlin e.V. therefore advocates for responsibly organized cultural and social formats in public spaces, accessible, safe, and in dialogue with authorities, residents, institutions, and other stakeholders.

Our Aspiration

We do not want to speak for Berlin. We want to bring people and organizations together who shape Berlin. Not every collaboration has to be permanent. Not every project has to become big. And not every participating organization has to represent the same position. But where common interests exist, cooperation should be possible.

This is the position of We Are Berlin e.V. Culture connects. A city moves.