Renata Zamida & Karolina Babič

Participatory Management of Public (Cultural) Institutions: opportunities and limitations

If anger, as the philosopher Mladen Dolar suggests in the festival's editorial, is closely linked to the feeling of powerlessness, then life in contemporary society requires us, among others, to build spaces and processes of empowering communities – hence, ways of social organization that will endow individuals and groups with the opportunity and responsibility to participate in decision-making and creation.

Because this holds for both private and public organizations, we ask ourselves: What elements of participatory management constitute possible ways of user participation in public (cultural) institutions? What are the examples of good practice from abroad and how do the Slovenians fare in this regard? What obstacles do we face in the public sphere and in terms of legalistic restrictions? We will also present a concrete proposal to introduce a participatory budget at the Rog Centre and a few other possibilities that this public creative hub will ensure as elements of co-management.

Renata Zamida has worked for over fifteen years as a cultural manager in the Slovenian cultural sector, mainly in publishing. As the director of the Rog Centre in Ljubljana, she is currently focused on the development of this new creative hub and public institution. She is the author of numerous professional articles and a mentor of development projects in the cultural and creative sectors, and she organizes workshops both in Slovenia and abroad.

Karolina Babič is an independent researcher and advisor in social and solidarity economies. She is a member of the Maribor-based association CAAP (Centre of Alternative and Autonomous Production). She holds a PhD in philosophical sciences. At the Faculty DOBA in Maribor, she works as an assistant professor in social economy. When necessary, she is also a columnist and an activist.

The talk will be moderated by Blaž Peršin, Director of the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana
The talk will be in Slovene.