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Welcome to the CultureForHealth web - our digital arena for showcasing the actions and the outcomes of the EU-funded bottom-up policy development for Culture & Well-being in the EU.

Do you want to know more about CultureForHealth? Read it here
Find a selection of CultureForHealth news and activities in the items featured below

News: Join the two-day conference on Culture for Wellbeing

The two-day conference on Culture for Health and Wellbeing is waiting for you!
Join us to explore more about the evidence regarding the health and wellbeing benefits of cultural activities, culture and forcibly displaced people, culture and youth mental health, caring for the helpers (rescue teams) and carers (medical staff and artists).
Become a part of days filled with insightful discussions, hands-on workshops, and opportunities to connect with like-minded professionals!

News: CultureForHealth movement will continue through CultureAndHealth Platform!

We are delighted to announce the continuation of the CultureForHealth movement through the launch of the CultureAndHealth Platform, with rebranding to reflect its expanded scope!

Thanks to co-funding from the European Union, Culture Action Europe and 14 European partner organizations will begin project activities in November 2024. The platform will run for four years, offering exciting opportunities for emerging European artists working at the intersection of culture, health, care, and social sectors.

New inspirational story about the Art of Ageing

We are tuning in on people, who are fighting the disease of Parkinson's in an amazing way, joining a world championship and a community of table tennis players.

Social Prescribing, Arts on Prescription, Table Tennis for Health - by the end we all want the same: to trigger the human instinct of moving, surviving, living. Not only adding more years to ones lifes, but also adding more life to ones years, adresseing the matter very much at our hearts: the Art of Ageing.

News: Watch our video from the CultureForHealth Final Conference

We have produced a video with speeches from the CultureForHealth Final Conference. You can watch it here.

News: Watch our video from the “Webinar on the Culture for Health and Well-being Compendium”

If you didn't have the chance to participate in the online webinar, you can watch our video from the webinar here.

Webinar & Compendium Launch

CultureForHealth invites practitioners from the cultural, social and health sectors to actively participate in our upcoming online event dedicated to the launch of the Compendium of sustainable culture-based solutions for well-being and health. Rooted in the experience and knowledge acquired in the CultureForHealth project, the compendium presents models of cross-sector collaboration for setting in motion such projects in cultural institutions or health- and care centers.

Webinar & Compendium Launch, 22 June 2023, 10:00 - 11:30 CEST

Summary of the CultureForHealth final conference

As part of the international conference, "Handle with Care | Culture for Social Well-being", CultureForHealth welcomed the conference participants to the final presentation of the results, work and relationships of the two-year-long marathon for the interdisciplinary bottom-up policy development project. A 1-day celebration of people and projects developing and advocating better understanding for the culture and arts positive impact on health and well-being.

CultureForHealth has endorsed a Joint Statement: ‘Mental Health in all Policies’

CultureForHealth and Culture Action Europe have endorsed the ‘EU HPP Mental Health in all Policies Joint Statement’, and in this article we are presenting some of the key statements.

"Visioning a Europe where everyone’s mental health can flourish across the entire life course and everyone can have timely, appropriate and affordable access to support, when needed."

European Mental Health Week, 22-28 May 2023

The CultureForHealth project is supporting the European Mental Health Week, 22-28 May 2023. This year’s theme is Mentally Healthy Communities. Under this year’s theme, Mentally Healthy Communities, the week seeks to “increase understanding and learning about mental health in our communities, schools, workplaces and at home so that everyone can thrive and flourish at every stage of life”.

Remember to registre for our two CultureForHealth events!

CultureForHealth is inviting you to two inspiring events bringing people together and speaking up the important agenda of culture and health.

How to tap the untapped?

In this article you can get a short introduction to the challenges addressed by #CultureForHealth and get an exclusive glimpse into the ideas sparked at the #CultureForHealth Ideathon.

What colours can prescribing activities have?

Today, March 9 2023, we are spending some time recognizing people supporting the improvements of health and well-being through social prescribing.

Video Recording from the CultureForHealth Report Launch is now available!

On 24 November, the #CultureForHealth project presented the CultureForHealth Report with findings of over 300 scientific studies and 500+ projects centralizing art and culture’s contribution to health and wellbeing. Watch the recording of the event here.

EVENT: "Raising Citizens' Awareness on the Importance of Culture in Europe" - 8th December 2022

On the 8th of December 2022 from 15.00 to 18.30 the European Parliament hosts the conference "Raising Citizens' Awareness on the Importance of Culture in Europe". Registrations are open for both on-site and remote participation.

The #CultureForHealth Report is now available!

The CultureForHealth project is proud to present the revised “CultureForHealth Report. Culture’s contribution to health and well-being. A report on evidence and policy recommendations for Europe.”

24 November: Launch of The CultureForHealth Report!

Scoping review of culture, well-being and health interventions and their evidence, impacts, challenges and policy recommendations for Europe.

16 November: Seminar - Culture: A Driver for Health and Wellbeing in the EU

16 November 2022 from 14.00 to 16.00: An seminar organized by the European Commission and the European Parliament on the subject "Culture: A Driver for Health and Wellbeing in the EU".

Report from Culture and Wellbeing Forum 2022 in Romania

The CultureForHealth partnership is gathered in Romania on 26 to 28 October for the Culture and Well-being Forum 2022 conference in Cluj-Napoca.

New Culture and Health Fund to Improve Mental Health in Aarhus Denmark

In Aarhus, Denmark the municipality wants to improve the mental health of its citizens. But instead of only prescribing treatment by a psychologist they have created a culture and health fund. 40 cultural initiatives that will work to strengthen the general health and mental health of citizens have received a share of the funds 2,1 million DKK.

Since 2020, Aarhus municipality has had a culture and health plan which offer activities with art and culture to improve the health and well-being of citizens. The new fund is a part of that plan.

Join us for the Culture and Well-being Forum 2022

Join us for the Culture and Well-being Forum 2022, which is dedicated this year to the CultureForHealth initiative. It will take place on 26-28th October 2022 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

CultureForHealth on the agenda of Cultural Affairs Committee meeting

Today at the EU Council Cultural Affairs Committee meeting, Culture Action Europe’s Kornelia Kiss presents the CultureForHealth project, focusing on how culture contributes to our health and wellbeing.
She also will give a preview of the evidence collected through the review of 300 scientific studies. This scoping review also includes a set of policy recommendations for Europe. The review will be publicly launched on 16 November.

How do the Arts Contribute to Community-Based Approaches to Health?

EuroHealthNet has recently published an interesting article about the CultureFor Health project.

The article tells of the mounting evidence on both a European and global scale that demonstrates how arts, creative and cultural activities can support and strengthen a populations health and societal wellbeing. It also describes some of the CultureForHealth project activities and initial research findings.

The article is written in cooporation between EuroHealthNet's Lina Papartyte, Project Coordinator in Practice, Senior Policy Coordinator, Dorota Sienkiewicz, and Projects and Operations Director for Culture Action Europe, Kornelia Kiss.

Museums for Mental Health

This morning we received some great news. Starting today, psychiatrists at the Brugmann Hospital in Brussels will be able to prescribe patients with symptoms of depression, burnout, and other mental health issues visits to five museums in the Brussels region.
This initiative is the first of its kind in Europe and will be announced later today by Brussels' culture alderwoman Delphine Houba. “We felt now’s the time to do it; the coronavirus reminded us that culture is essential for mental health,” Houba told POLITICO.

WHO Publishes “Arts and Health: Supporting The Mental Well-Being Of Forcibly Displaced People”

This week a publication by the World Health Organization, and initiated by the CultureForHealth project, was published outlining important ways arts activities can be relevant activities to improve the health and well-being of forcibly displaced people. It also provides calls to action to everyone involved in responding to humanitarian crises, including health workers, policy-makers, relief workers, cultural organizations, arts therapists and artists.

Sign Up For Monthly Newsletters!

Would you like to stay updated on the latest news and work within the field of Culture & Health? Sign up for CultureForHealth’s monthly newsletters.

Call For Applications: Youth, Mental Health And Culture

The third topic of Voices of Culture 2021 – 2023 will generate project ideas and policy recommendations for the cultural and creative sectors and decision-makers on the topic of the role of the cultural and creative sectors in improving mental health of young people.

New Large-Scale-European Map And Directory Of Arts And Health Initiatives Is Now Available To Everyone

CultureForHealth has launched a new, free-to-use, large-scale and easy accessible map and directory of Arts and Health projects and programs in Europe and around the world with more than 500 inspiring cases and growing. The project is funded by the European Commission.

Get your project on the map

We invite you to add your projects on art, health and well-being to our Map (hyperlink to mapping page). Make sure your project gets visibility through our directory of good practices and serves as inspiration of practitioners and decision makers in Europe.

Mental Health Of Refugees And The CultureForHealth Project

In light of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the recent refugee flux - consisting mostly of young individuals - the particular issue of mental health needs of refugees and forcibly displaced people is crucial and timely. CultureForHealth seeks to map evidence of the ways arts and culture can support the mental health and well-being of forcibly displaced people.

European Mental Health Week: "Speak Up For Mental Health"

Mental Health Europe (MHE) is hosting the third edition of the European Mental Health Week on 9-13 May 2022. The theme ‘Speak up for mental health’ will shine the spotlight on youth mental health as a high-profile societal issue now and in the future.

Photo: Tim Mossholder

Mental Health Needs of Refugees - How Arts & Culture Can Help

Culture Action Europe, The World Health Organisation, University College London and the partners of the CultureForHealth project are collecting key evidence and case studies relating to how arts and culture can support mental health and provide support for refugees.