Hosting a Satellite BEYOND
Beyond Satellites: Open Call for Hosts 2027–2028
We invite CAE members to apply to host the second edition of the Beyond Satellites, taking place between September 2027 and August 2028.
What is a Beyond Satellite?
A Beyond Satellite is part of the Culture Action Europe’s strategic framework for joint advocacy and a regional extension of Central BEYOND. Hosted by CAE members, Geographical Hubs, or groups of members, often in partnership with local organisations and communities, each Satellite is rooted in principles of decentralisation, proximity, and contextual sensitivity.
Satellites zoom into cultural issues that matter most in the region. They open space for radical imagination, create a platform for dialogue and capacity-building and give regional cultural and political needs a concrete, amplified voice, connecting local realities with the EU-level advocacy.
By expanding the reach of Central BEYOND, Satellites democratise participation and amplify diverse cultural voices, ensuring that CAE’s European advocacy is informed by a wide spectrum of experiences and perspectives.
Culture Action Europe believes in culture as a building block for a Europe open to the world, for the sustainability of our planet, and for plural, open and caring societies. Beyond Satellites put these beliefs to work where culture is made in spaces where more voices can take part, where access is considered from the start, and where gatherings are organised with care for people and planet. Each Satellite is a place to practise these values together.
Who can host
Any CAE member, Geographical Hub, or group of members can apply to host a Beyond Satellite. We encourage hosts to collaborate with other existing events and organisations in their region. A Satellite can run back-to-back with, or be built into, an activity already planned by the host or a partner.
How are regions designed?
Between September 2027 and August 2028, six Beyond Satellites will take place across Europe. The following distribution was suggested and applied during the 2025 – 2026 edition, and can still be considered as a starting point:
- North: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom
- West: Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Switzerland
- Centre: Austria, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, Ukraine
- South-West: Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain
- South-East: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia
- East: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Türkiye
If you would like to change the participating countries within a region, or propose a different structure of connection, propose it in your application and explain the connection, so that CAE can balance the Satellites across the network.
Participation is open. Any member, no matter their country of residence, can attend any Satellite they would like to.
Programme and Capacity
The format is open and adaptable. Hosts can choose methods such as unconferences, open space discussions, design sprints, or other creative formats, and work with the partners that suit their context.
A Satellite can be combined with another ongoing activity run by the host or a partner organisation, in the region within which they define themselves. This builds on work that already exists, opens new partnerships, and makes room for programme elements such as exhibitions, performances, or field visits.
Outcome document. Each Satellite passes a one-page outcome document on to CAE, capturing its main findings and concrete asks. The form is open: a manifesto, a policy brief, a list of demands, or another format that suits the region. It is shaped together with all participants in a dedicated session of the programme, supported by discussion prompts from CAE.
Expected Outcomes
Each Beyond Satellite is expected to:
- Run for a maximum of 1.5 days
- Attract at least 50 participants from the region, in person
- Engage a mix of cultural stakeholders, project representatives, and local or regional policymakers
- Contribute to a collective communication campaign across all Satellites, connected to Central BEYOND
- Secure local funding or partnerships
- Handle logistics locally
- Follow CAE’s SHIFT sustainability guidelines, adapted to your capacity
- Submit a short narrative report, the final programme, photos, and a 1-page Outcome document
Organisers are encouraged to secure local funding and sponsorship but can also access up to €2,000 from CAE’s ACT project to support the event. A brief report, programme, and photos should be submitted to CAE following the event.
Support from CAE
As part of its commitment to the success of the Satellites, the CAE central office offers dedicated support:
- Assistance with the overall content development of the Satellite
- Support in the preparation, including a mentoring visit to meet potential partners, supporters, and funders
- Support in identifying and inviting speakers and contributors
- Regional dissemination through the CAE members network and CAE communication channels (newsletters, social media, website)
- Mobility support for up to two CAE staff or board members to attend and contribute where needed
- Access to the Satellite Headquarters, a living resource page with sample budgets, accessibility checklists, sustainability considerations, and other information to structure your planning
Timeline and scheduling windows
Beyond Satellites take place between September 2027 and August 2028, within three scheduling windows:
- Window 1: September to early December 2027
- Window 2: January to March 2028
- Window 3: April to July 2028
The windows take holiday periods and the wider cultural calendar into account, so that hosts and participants can take part more easily.
Each window can hold no more than two Satellites, six in total. Every application must name two preferred windows, in order of preference. Where a host can connect their Satellite to another existing event and expand its reach, that proposal will be given priority in scheduling, encouraging partnerships within the network. Please make sure to make this connection visible in your application.
Possible Satellite Topics
The following is a list of possible thematic focuses, all related to the CAE strategy or the advocacy efforts we see across our sectors. Please treat them not as prescriptive, but as a starting point for your thinking. Each host chooses one focus topic for their Satellite, which does not have to come from this list.
At Culture Action Europe, we feel a responsibility for our sectors to reimagine our shared futures. We therefore encourage a radical, out-of-the-box approach to framing your Satellite thematically: think beyond the status quo and push boundaries. Let’s be more surprising and make room to be surprised.
- Cultural Democracy and Ethical Leadership
- Socially Engaged Arts
- Impact and Evaluation
- Funding for Culture
- Freedom of Artistic Expression and the Autonomy of the Sector
- Sustainability
- Culture, Wellbeing and Health
- Accessibility, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
- Cultural Rights
- Urban/Rural interplay
- Access to and participation in culture
- Artistic Research and Artistic Intelligence
- AI and Digital
- International Cultural Relations
Interested in hosting?
‣ Apply to the Call for Interest
The Call for Interest to host a Satellite BEYOND is open for CAE Members now! Fill out the form until 28 February 2027 if you are interested in hosting a Satellite BEYOND event in the period from September 2027 and August 2028.
‣ Check out our Satellite Headquarters
This is a living resource page to support Satellite hosts with sample budgets, accessibility checklists, sustainability considerations and other important information that can help structure your planning as a Satellite host.