Five of Europe’s ‘nightlife specialists’ have teamed up to present NightSchool: An EU-wide training programme designed to support night culture producers early in their careers. This transnational education programme will focus on environmental, social and economic sustainability.
The project pairs nightlife visionaries spanning promoters, bookers, venue owners, and hands-on creatives with industry veterans from the European culture circuit. Funded by the European Union’s Creative Europe, NightSchool will select 15 participants and provide a grant of €5,000 each. This will go towards facilitating a week of peer-learning sessions in multiple cities and launching their own sustainable event ideas. ‘Empowering individuals to turn their visions into reality is at the programme’s core.’
The programme will offer recipients the chance to travel and engage in a sequence of face-to-face peer-learning sessions hosted by ‘experts’ and three European night culture venues. The programme launches with an open call to select young culture producers from across Europe. Together, they will visit some venues in Europe to learn.
Co-founder Mirik Milan: “Nightlife creatives and culture producers are first and foremost problem solvers. They are needed right now, more than ever, to take on the unique challenges and opportunities of our rapidly evolving cultural sector.”
The micro-funding scheme (€75,000) will support the selectees in implementing sustainability-focused night culture events across all of Europe. To complement the training and mentorship programme, the programme is building an online resource and hybrid platform that offers educational content to a global audience, hosted and curated by a network of people within night culture and sustainability.
A joint effort by five partnering organisations, NightSchool is a collaboration between Vibelab, Belgian club FUSE, Latvia’s Kaņepes Kultūras Centrs, Italian-based BASIS Vinschgau Venost alongside their in-house event KASINO Club, and Sweden-based cultural strategy and production agency Transversal Project.
This notion of collaboration is key to the programme's mission.
Mirik Milan: “While the term 'community' is frequently overused in the commercial world, its essence lies in uniting a collective of like-minded souls together. At NightSchool, we join forces to address issues of diversity, inclusivity and solidarity. As well as climate action and the ecological dimension of night culture, we provide first-hand insights on maintaining a financially sound enterprise.”
Based on three core pillars of social awareness, sustainability and entrepreneurship, it aims to create inclusive, safe(r) and vibrant environments that actively promote diversity, wellbeing and positive community interactions. Promoting environmental sustainability whilst minimising the environmental impact of nighttime cultural activities.
Through applied practices incorporating energy efficiency, waste reduction, sustainable sourcing and reduced air travel, the brand explores business activities within the nighttime cultural sector covering venue management, events organisation, and curating experiences aiming to enrich their respective city's local scene.
Applications are open now, with th closing date 12 April, with participants committing to a week-long training between 3-8 June 2024. For more information.
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