The aim of the programme is to enable cultural administrators to embed sustainability in municipal cultural work and to support cultural professionals in the transformation process.
The NRW KULTURsekretariat uses its interdisciplinary network to advance the sustainable development and transformation of its members' cultural administrations. In addition, renowned partners such as the Wuppertal Institute, the Landesarbeitsgemeinschaft Agenda 21 NRW (Agenda 21 Working Group of North Rhine-Westphalia) and Neue Effizienz (New Efficiency) contribute their expertise to the programme launched by the NRWKS in 2023.
Once a month, the NRWKS invites participants to the ‘Grüne Mittagspause’ (Green Lunch Break) as part of the programme to share ideas and exchange views. The format is open to everyone and presents best practices from sustainability in municipal cultural work. Following a keynote speech, participants can ask questions and engage in conversation with each other.
The online event takes place on the first Tuesday of every month from 1:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. and is primarily aimed at employees in the cultural administrations of NRWKS member cities. However, if you are interested in the event, please feel free to contact us.
Grüne Mittagspause (Green Lunch Break)
Anyone interested can register for the ‘Grüne Mittagspause’ series of events using the online form.
Upcoming event
07.07.2026 Organising and implementing local transformation: The Local Green Deal (for the City of) Mannheim
With the Local Green Deal, the City of Mannheim has developed an innovative approach to driving forward the city’s sustainable transformation in collaboration with the administration, politicians, the business community, academia and civil society. At its heart is the idea of initiating and supporting specific projects and partnerships – known as ‘Deals’ – that contribute to the achievement of climate, environmental and sustainability goals. The Local Green Deal office, set up specifically under the Mayor’s Department, acts as a networking, advisory and facilitating body both within and outside the local government.
During the ‘Green Lunch Break’, Judith Geiser, Head of the Local Green Deal Office, and Frida Brett-Smith, Local Green Deal Manager for Land Use and Food, will provide insights into the origins of the Local Green Deal, its organisational integration within the city administration and the team’s working methods.
In addition, practical experiences will be shared: to date, around 270 concrete initiatives for greater sustainability – known as ‘deals’ – have already been developed as part of the Local Green Deal. Using selected examples, including projects from the cultural sector, the speakers will demonstrate how sustainable transformation can be achieved in practice through cooperation and networking.
Following the presentation, there will be an opportunity for questions, discussion and exchange of views.
Past events
For 30 years, the city of Augsburg has been pursuing an urban sustainability process – the ‘Local Agenda 21 for a Sustainable Augsburg’ – and, since 2015, has been supplementing the classic three-pillar model of sustainability (ecology, economy, social issues) with the dimension of culture. Twenty future guidelines were developed through a participatory process (five of which relate to the cultural dimension), and these have since influenced local government decisions. This approach serves as a model for local politics and administration and, with appropriate adaptation, can provide a framework for other local authorities. Dr Norbert Stamm, Head of the Office for Sustainability and the Local Agenda 21 Secretariat in Augsburg, and Anne Schuester from Sensemble Theater Augsburg, who is active in the Agenda process as an Agenda spokesperson, Chair of the Sustainability Advisory Board and representative of the Standing Conference of Cultural Practitioners, will shed light on the City of Augsburg’s approach and discuss how this impacts the work of cultural practitioners and institutions. Following the keynote presentation, there will be an opportunity for exchange and discussion.
For 30 years, the city of Augsburg has been pursuing an urban sustainability process – the ‘Local Agenda 21 for a Sustainable Augsburg’ – and, since 2015, has been supplementing the classic three-pillar model of sustainability (ecology, economy, social issues) with the dimension of culture. Twenty future guidelines were developed through a participatory process (five of which relate to the cultural dimension), and these have since influenced local government decisions. This approach serves as a model for local politics and administration and, with appropriate adaptation, can provide a framework for other local authorities. Dr Norbert Stamm, Head of the Office for Sustainability and the Local Agenda 21 Secretariat in Augsburg, and Anne Schuester from Sensemble Theater Augsburg, who is active in the Agenda process as an Agenda spokesperson, Chair of the Sustainability Advisory Board and representative of the Standing Conference of Cultural Practitioners, will shed light on the City of Augsburg’s approach and discuss how this impacts the work of cultural practitioners and institutions. Following the keynote presentation, there will be an opportunity for exchange and discussion.
The transformation tasks of the future are diverse. This raises the question of whether local institutions are structurally and mentally prepared to tackle them. To get to the bottom of this, Kehl University of Applied Sciences and the KIAF – Kehl Institute for Applied Research have carried out a research project, which is funded and scientifically supported by the Federal Association for Housing and Urban Development (vhw). The project aims to initiate a joint learning process between local authorities, city administrations and stakeholders from the arts and culture sectors to facilitate sustainable local development. Prof. Dr Jürgen Kegelmann and his team from Kehl University of Applied Sciences and the KIAF – Kehl Institute for Applied Research will present key findings from the project. There will be time for questions and discussion afterwards.
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is far more than an educational concept – it is a key building block for sustainable societies. By strategically integrating ESD into cultural development plans, funding programmes and local authority mission statements, cultural institutions can become active shapers of sustainable transformation. This is because cultural venues are also places of learning, spaces for dialogue, creativity and social debate. Local authorities play a crucial role in embedding this approach both programmatically and structurally. However, ESD affects a wide variety of departments within local authorities and requires cross-departmental and cross-disciplinary cooperation. Dr Katrin Otremba, Research Officer at FABINEK – the Centre for Education for Sustainable Development in Local Authorities – presents selected research findings and strategies for ESD-related cooperation within local government, which also offer practical support to stakeholders in cultural administrations.
In March 2021, the City of Freiburg's Cultural Office initiated the ‘Kulturlabor Freiburg’ participation process with the aim of shaping the future of municipal arts and culture funding with a view to the social concern of sustainable development. The resulting strategy paper contains perspectives for practical implementation for the city, local politicians and cultural actors, and is currently being implemented. Felicia Maier, head of the Freiburg Cultural Office, will present the development, results and current status of the process and highlight challenges, particularly against the backdrop of the tight budgetary situation in local authorities. As always, there will be time for questions and discussion after a short presentation.
Funding has been approved for the Circular.Culture project – a materials management system for North Rhine-Westphalia! The project will be able to start in January 2026 in collaboration with Neue Effizienz gGmbH, the City of Cologne and the City of Bonn (Theater Bonn). The project will run for three years, until the end of 2028. We will use the first ‘Green Lunch Break’ of the new year to present the project to you. The NRWKS will give a brief introduction to the origins of Circular.Culture and its main areas of work, introduce new team members and answer initial questions in an exchange.
The Goethe-Institut's Cities Ahead programme supports local authorities in their cultural urban development – also in an international context. It consists of the two-day Cities Ahead Academy with workshops and expert input for administrators and cultural actors, as well as an optional open call for proposals to promote creative, participatory projects. Modules cover topics such as ecological sustainability, international networks, cultural data and cultural participation. The aim is to design cities as creative, liveable places. The programme also supports employees of the city of Essen, which is applying to become a UNESCO Creative City of Design in 2027. Laura Oehms, consultant for the UNESCO Creative City of Design application at the city of Essen, reports on the requirements for how the programme supports the city's cultural administration and on its significance in the application process.
The programme ‘Elf zu Null – Hamburger Museen handeln’ (Eleven to Zero – Hamburg Museums Take Action) is a pioneering project on the road to climate neutrality: eleven Hamburg museums, exhibition venues and memorial sites have joined forces and are consistently implementing the ecological transformation of their buildings. This project was also made possible by close cooperation with the cultural administration. Isgard Rhein (Hamburg Ministry of Culture and Media, Head of Participation Management), Kai Heitmann (Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg/Elf zu Null, Controlling) and Caroline Markiewicz (Elf zu Null, Network Management).
Numerous funding opportunities help cities, municipalities and districts to implement sustainability measures. However, it is not always easy to maintain an overview of the complex funding landscape, especially since sustainability is a cross-cutting issue that affects a wide range of areas. How can local authorities gain easy access to funding for sustainability? With its SDG funding pool, LAG 21 NRW aims to provide insight and an overview. Divided into the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, it allows users to discover topic-specific funding for sustainability activities that also relate to culture. Mona Rybicki, Scientific Project Manager and Head of Networks at LAG 21 NRW, will provide an insight into this useful tool and answer questions.
Many municipal challenges affect several departments at the same time. This is particularly true for sustainability issues. However, traditional ‘compartmentalisation’ often prevents coordinated action. In practice, however, rigid responsibilities often dominate. How can cross-departmental work succeed? Christiane Knirsch (Head of the Future Space Demography Office) uses the toolbox from the Future Workshop for Municipalities to demonstrate specific tools, tried-and-tested models and strategies that administrations can use to overcome sectoral boundaries and work together effectively.
How can the course be set for successful cooperation between cultural institutions? Schleswig-Holstein is leading the way: five major cultural institutions have joined forces, initiated a joint learning process and developed a climate protection concept for culture. This has allowed resources to be pooled and effective learning to take place. Nina Hensel and Kerrin Trimpler present the results of the project, but above all the conditions for successful cross-sector cooperation.
Ralf Weiß from the 2N2k network presents the publication ‘Nachhaltige Kulturkommunen. Practice and perspectives of municipal cultural promotion in Bavaria’. Based on ten member cities of the Bavaria-wide network of cultural municipalities STADTKULTUR, research was carried out into how municipal cultural concepts can contribute to the promotion of sustainable urban development.
Under the leadership of the Lower Saxony Foundation, the state of Lower Saxony, various local authorities and the largest foundations and regions have come together to jointly address the issue of sustainability criteria in cultural funding. The result is a checklist and a declaration by Lower Saxony's cultural sponsors. Daniela Koß from the Lower Saxony Foundation not only provides insights into the results, but also into the intra-municipal model process.
In December 2024, Culture4Climate and the Kulturpolitische Gesellschaft jointly published the policy briefing ‘Culture as a building block of transformative environmental policy’ and formulated concrete impulses for action for cultural and environmental policy. Co-author Margarethe Kreuser will present and discuss the policy briefing, particularly with a view to the Bundestag elections at the end of February. The lunch break will exceptionally take place on Thursday due to the carnival holidays!
The city of Worms has tackled the challenges of developing a sustainability strategy for the cultural sector not only within the cultural administration and, conversely, how culture can enrich the municipal sustainability strategy. Cultural Coordinator David Maier reports on how inter-municipal cooperation in Worms has been successful and what the sustainability strategy for cultural institutions looks like - also taking into account cultural funding!
Workshop on the topic of sustainability
Together with the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the NRWKS has organised a workshop in Duisburg on 24.02.2025 as part of its ‘öKoKom’ and ‘Greenstage’ programmes. It brougth together people from the arts, culture, administration and cultural policy who are working together on measures in the field of sustainability and climate protection. One focus has been on municipal cooperation.
![[Translate to English:]](/fileadmin/user_upload/Programme/%C3%B6KoKom/E-SDG-Poster-2019_without-UN-emblem_WEB.jpg "[Translate to English:]")