A city for all: Vienna’s vision for inclusive cultural participation

The Challenge

Accessing a city’s cultural offerings can be particularly challenging for groups living in precarious economic conditions, such as those on social welfare, retirees on minimal pensions, refugees, or the unemployed.

The Purpose

The aim is to encourage citizens, non-profits and non-governmental organisations to collaborate with institutions and government resources to achieve a larger goal. This mission is to ensure that Vienna’s cultural offerings are accessible to all residents of the city, regardless of their social, physical or economic status.

The Kulturpass card provides socially disadvantaged individuals with free admission to numerous cultural institutions and also offers opportunities to welcome newcomers to the city, such as the program being extended to Ukrainian refugees.

The Kulturpass has inspired similar initiatives, including Brussels, Luxembourg, and the German cities of Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Darmstadt and Jena.

The Solution

Vienna’s Kulturpass, known as ‘Hunger auf Kunst und Kultur’ (‘Hunger for Art and Culture’), addresses the socio-economic and psychological barriers to cultural engagement faced by disadvantaged residents of Vienna. It offers free access to museums, activities, and other cultural opportunities.

The project provides free entrance to cultural institutions and activities in Vienna for six months or a year from the date of issue. Initially developed by the Schauspielhaus Wien, an avant-garde theatre known for its innovative contemporary dramatic works, and the NGO Armutskonferenz, a network combating poverty and social exclusion, the scheme has been operational for over 20 years.

The Impact

While Kulturpass receives some financial support from the City of Vienna, funding primarily comes from participating institutions that seek donations from their support networks. Kulturpass serves as an outstanding example of collaboration at individual, institutional and governmental levels, to maximise social benefits.

In addition to providing the office infrastructure for Kulturpass, Armutskonferenz assists with its distribution in cooperation with several other charitable organisations and assistance services. These satellite organisations work together to ensure that the mission of Kulturpass is fully integrated into the social fabric of the city, thus democratising Vienna’s cultural offerings.

On an international scale, the Kulturpass has inspired similar initiatives, including Brussels, Luxembourg, and the German cities of Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Darmstadt and Jena.

Source: World Cities Culture Report 2022

Images Courtesy © City of Vienna