The CREACT4MED Closing Event “Forging Future Paths for Creativity and Culture” was concluded with great success last week in Barcelona with the participation of over 100 stakeholders from across the Mediterranean. The event was organised by project coordinator EMEA and project partner IEMED on the 10th and 11th July 2024 and took place at EMEA HQs in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sant Pau Recinte Modernista, Barcelona, and online.
Over the past 4 years, CREACT4MED has provided financial support to cultural and creative entities, launched a training programme to upskill budding entrepreneurs, and has built a community of over 1600 creative minds across the Mediterranean region. On the 10th and 11th of July 2024, over 100 participants, including project partners and beneficiaries, financial agents, business development experts and start-ups, celebrated the project’s final event in Barcelona as the CREACT4MED team presented the project’s impact and achievements. The event aimed to gather key stakeholders from across the Mediterranean to solidify the CREACT4MED community and spark further action for stronger and brighter cultural and creative industries in the Mediterranean.
The event started on 10 July 2024 with a welcome speech by CREACT4MED Coordinator & EMEA Senior Project Officer, Maria Ruiz de Cossío. She welcomed all the participants and congratulated them on their great efforts and contributions to the cultural and creative industries so far in their careers. Following this, EMEA Project Manager, Christine de Visser chaired the first session: CREACT4MED Best Practice Awards Ceremony. The winners of the CREACT4MED Best Practice Awards were:
EGYPT: Al Qalam, Egypt, represented by Mohamed Hassan
JORDAN: Puppets World for the Development of Children represented by Rami Bader and Loiy Bader
LEBANON: theOtherDada on behalf of Studio Madane, Lebanon, represented by Nader Akoum
MOROCCO: Meteor Airlines represented by Rachid Ennassiri
PALESTINE: Askadar for Culture and Arts represented by Naim Shakhshir
TUNISIA: DigiArtLivingLab represented by Bilel Billeli
6 special mention prizes were awarded to:
- Almah
- Qaleb Studio
- SAWA For Development & Aid
- 4SFEST
- Tamer Institute for Community Education
- Couscous Publishing House
In the afternoon, the CREACT4MED beneficiaries participated in a closed session: “Catalysing the CCI: Building Bridges for CCI Entrepreneurs and Incubators“. In this workshop, the participants explored strategies for building bridges between diverse cultural and creative enterprises through interactive discussions, networking activities, and collaborative exercises. The session emphasised the importance of cultural exchange, creative partnerships, and cross-sector collaborations in driving growth and sustainability within the CCI ecosystem.
After an icebreaking exercise that helped the participants to learn more about each other, the participants were divided into 2 workshops running in parallel:
- Workshop 1: Entrepreneurs and Best Practice Winners, led by EMEA
- Workshop 2: Incubators & Regional Dialogue, led by BUSINESSMED
The 1st day of the Closing Event ended with the session “CREATIVE GAMES: Fostering Creativity through Movement” by Caitlan Maggs former Artistic Head Coach at Cirque du Soleil for 22 years. Caitlan Maggs designed the Creativity Training for all the Cirque du Soleil shows. She shared her expertise and helped the participants to unlock their creative potential. The CREACT4MED beneficiaries took part in a series of games designed to foster teambuilding, connection and creativity.
Day 2 of the CREACT4MED Closing Event began with the CREACT4MED Press Conference in collaboration with media outlet EFE. At the Press Conference, the partners and beneficiaries of the project explained the impacts and results of CREACT4MED, as well as the next steps for the cultural and creative industries in the region. CREACT4MED was represented by Prof. Rym Ayadi, President and Founder of EMEA and CREACT4MED Director, Maria Ruiz de Cossío, CREACT4MED Coordinator, Senior Project Manager, EMEA, Roger Albinyana, Managing Director at IEMED, as well as 3 project beneficiaries: Rola Fayyad, Founder and CEO, ViaVii Jordan, Wafae Zaoui, Founder and CEO, CRÉ ARTISANAT Morocco, and Farah Chamas, Project Manager, Nucleus Ventures, Lebanon.
The 2nd day of the event opened with welcoming remarks by the EMEA President and CREACT4MED Director, Prof. Rym Ayadi, and Stefano Dotto, Head of Sector, EU Neighborhood & Enlargement. Prof. Ayadi highlighted that “cultural and creative industries are not just a source of beauty and inspiration; they are powerful engines of economic growth and social cohesion. By fostering innovation and entrepreneurship, these industries serve as vital building blocks for economic transformation and sustainable social development in the Mediterranean region”. Prof. Ayadi also announced the creation of the “Alliance for the Creative Mediterranean”, a new initiative led by EMEA.
Following the introduction, Maria Ruiz, CREACT4MED Coordinator & EMEA Senior Project Officer opened the session, “CREACT4MED: Our Impacts, Achievements, and Lessons Learned” and welcomed the CREACT4MED project partners to explain their activities over the last 4 years. The panel was made up of:
- Dr. Yeganeh Forouheshfar, Senior Researcher, EMEA on Mapping
- Hend Mgaieth, Outreach Coordinator, BUSINESSMED – Union of Mediterranean Confederations of Enterprises on Mainstreaming the CCI
- Maria Dalakoura, Project Manager, Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (iED) on Training
- Christine de Visser, Project Manager, EMEA and Douja Gharbi, CEO and Founder, Redstart Tunisie on Subgranting
- Angela Campos, Project Manager, European Institute of the Mediterranean IEMED on Advocacy and Engagement
The second part of the session invited the project beneficiaries to explain their experiences with CREACT4MED and how the support provided has impacted them and their businesses. We heard from:
- Bilal Zahalan, CEO, Tourific
- Ayah Awwad, Project Manager, Palestinian Business Women’s Association – ASALA
- Sherazade Amous, CEO, KLINK
- Leïla Hizaoui, Project Manager, Minassa منصة
- Maryam Azzam, Bazarna Pop-Up Society
The session ended with a roundtable discussion moderated by Maria Ruiz de Cossío.
Next was the CREACT4MED Pitching Session. 23 companies have been supported since Autumn 2023 and at the sessions, they pitched to look for further funding to support their CCI business ventures. Following the pitches, the entrepreneurs heard from the investors themselves in the session: “Fostering Creative Ventures: Access to Finance Fireside Chat in the Southern Mediterranean” on what they needed to know about various sources of funding including crowdfunding, business angels, impact investments, credit guarantee schemes, donors and sponsorship programmes. The panel, moderated by Douja Gharbi, CEO of RedStart Tunisie, was made up of:
- Jonas Sala, Founder, Verkami
- Tarek A. El Kady, Founder, Investors of the Mediterranean
- Zineb Rharrasse, CEO, Start-up Maroc
- Michelle Mouracade, Alfanar Venture Philanthropy
- Maral Mikirditsian, AFAC – The Arab Fund for Arts and Culture
Finally, the event came to a close with the Entrepreneur’s Exhibition and a live concert by Café d’Alger. Each entrepreneur was provided with a booth to showcase their business to investors, BSOs, and other experts in the Southern Mediterranean Region, giving them a great opportunity to network whilst engaging in the rich culture of the region.
Throughout the event, CREACT4MED released several key publications and videos. Check them out through the links below:
CREACT4MED: Our Impacts and Achievements
CREACT4MED – Interviews with the Entrepreneurs
CREACT4MED – The Entrepreneurs (Video)
CREACT4MED: Our Impacts and Achievements (Video)
The CREACT4MED project was co-funded by the European Union and was coordinated by the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association.
