Tandem Europe Kick Off Leipzig, Photo by Constanze Flamme Tandem Europe 2015-16 In our day-to-day work as organisations behind Tandem Europe we observe a wealth of fresh ideas, unusual collaborations and new working models that have emerged all over the creative sector. Cultural managers from all corners of the EU have started to explore and experiment with new designs for tackling socio-economic issues in their working fields and communities. Tandem Europe supports these initiatives in taking the next strategic steps by collaborating with other creative minds from abroad. Partner Forum in Milan Let the matching magic begin… The Partner Forum is the first meeting of the new round where participants meet, brainstorm collaboration ideas and finally form Tandems for the further course of the programme. 44 participants from 17 EU countries came in Milan together to share stories, find partners and develop prototypes. The meeting was hosted in a former industrial building called exAnsaldo. A special venue where presentations, discussions and prototyping sessions took place in a huge space flooded with sunlight. In this environment many cross-sectoral ideas and creative strategies were discussed to tackle current challenges such as demographic change, art intervention in public space, integration of refugees and innovative community outreach. Have a look at the flickr gallery. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Partner Forum in Milan. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Partner Forum in Milan. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Reflection on the Partner Forum If you now want to reminisce about the good times in Milan or get an impression of how a participant expierenced the Tandem Partner Forum, have a look at Lydia Ashman’s reflection: The journey of a mug and an idea! The adventure began at 5.30am on Sunday morning; a slumbering London, lit by street lamps, flew past. To Milan and the unknown. Though I’d studied my fellow 43 participants’ profiles, looked closely at the agenda, and even been on a Tandem Partnership Forum back in 2014, it was impossible to know what to expect. ... Lydia Ashman at Tandem Europe Partner Forum in Milan 2015. Photo by Constanze Flamme Kick-off Meeting in Leipzig The meeting took place on and around the infamous Eisenbahnstrasse: the only street in Leipzig where you can buy a proper gözleme, but also the street where there are regular fights and drug arrests. Five days of collecting inspiration and planning Tandem collaborations. A like Admin, B like Budget and C like Contracts – were only some important topics around project management and planning. Eduardo from Associazione Culturale Twitteratura, a colleague of one of the Tandem participants, joined the meeting as well and shares his impressions about his visit in Leipzig about gentification, co-housing, contemorary art as well as green and red man walking with you in his published article “Leipzig, a lesson of resilience”. In early February 2016 I had the opportunity to visit Leipzig as a participant of Tandem Europe, a project aimed at helping European social ventures scale up their cultural projects on the international stage through a learning process focused on creating bilateral partnerships between cultural managers living in different EU states. I spent four days in the  Neustadtneighbourhood and encountered several social experiences that may be worth of notice for innovators operating throughout the continent. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Kick-off Meeting in Leipzig. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Kick-off Meeting in Leipzig. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Interim Meeting in Leeurwarden Some impressions from another wonderful meeting. This time the group met in the Netherlands, in Leuuwarden. 30 creatives from 12 countries took the week to fine tune their collaboration plans, cycle the city and be inspired by Ftiesland! Visit the flickr gallery through Leeurwarden and the Interim Meeting. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Interim Meeting in Leuuwarden. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Tandem Europe 2015-17, Interim Meeting in Leuuwarden. Photo by Constanze Flamme. Final Meeting in Athens The final meeting of Tandem Europe will take place in Athens in January 2017.