CLIMB - Leadership Development Programme • Circostrada

WHAT IS IT?

CLIMB is a Leadership Development Programme, dedicated to Circostrada members. Designed for experienced cultural professionals holding leadership responsibilities, the programme aims to strengthen leadership skills while fostering fair, sustainable and equitable practices within the contemporary circus and outdoor arts sectors.

The first edition, co-hosted with Outdoor Arts Italia, is taking place from Wednesday 18 to Friday 20 March 2026 at Castello di San Sebastiano Po in Piemonte, Italy, and will welcome a small group of 15 participants - 10 members from the Circostrada network and 5 members from Outdoor Arts Italia - for three intensive days of peer-to-peer exchanges, workshops and inspiring sessions.

CONTEXT

CLIMB is grounded in the recognition that leadership in the contemporary circus and outdoor arts sectors unfolds within complex and rapidly evolving social, political and cultural contexts. Cultural organisations operate in fragmented, project-based ecosystems and are increasingly called upon to respond to systemic transitions while sustaining artistic integrity, organisational care and public responsibility.

CLIMB positions leadership as a relational and accountable practice, with particular attention to the alignment between internal governance, working conditions and external advocacy. By offering a dedicated space for reflection and peer exchange, the programme supports cultural leaders in developing tools and perspectives that enable fair, sustainable and inclusive ways of working while navigating contemporary challenges. This programme is also connected with the SPARK research lab led by Circostrada.

OVERALL OBJECTIVES

The 3-day CLIMB workshop aims to:

Support cultural leaders in integrating complex contemporary dynamics and global uncertainties into their organisational and strategic vision;

Strengthen capacities to cultivate shared value within organisations through inclusive and participatory governance and transparent decision-making processes;

Explore leadership practices that support fair and equitable working conditions in project-based cultural ecosystems;

Develop approaches to advocacy that are grounded in cultural rights, democratic values and multi-stakeholder engagement;

Foster critical reflection on mental health and well-being within cultural organisations, particularly in relation to creative processes, leadership responsibilities and structural precarity.

WHAT DOES THE PROGRAMME OFFER?

Which topics will we tackle?

CLIMB invites cultural leaders in contemporary circus and outdoor arts to explore how leadership is being reshaped by the profound transformations affecting today’s cultural, political and organisational landscapes. Moderated and facilitated by Giuliana Ciancio, Luisella Carnelli and Dea Vidovic, the programme frames leadership as a relational and accountable practice, called to sustain fair and sustainable practices while navigating complexity, uncertainty and responsibility.

Giuliana Ciancio will address global changes and the role of emotions in decision-making processes, examining how political pressures and international dynamics redefine cultural leadership practices and internal governance.

Luisella Carnelli will focus on well-being, soft skills and empowerment, supporting participants in mapping the competences needed to strengthen organisational care.

Dea Vidovic will explore participatory governance and international relations, analysing limits, opportunities and key interlocutors for cultural leaders operating in complex ecosystems.

Across these perspectives, transversal themes such as commons, care, co-creation, advocacy, cultural rights and relational leadership will be continuously woven into the programme.

Which methods will we use?

The three-day journey is designed as an immersive learning bubble, where analytical inputs on contemporary transformations remain in constant dialogue with (a) practice sessions, (b) collective reflection and (c) hands-on experimentation.

Each day will open with dedicated warm-up moments, designed to awake the bodies and prepare the ground for the shared explorations.
Informal peer exchanges, shared making moments, walks in nature and dedicated workshops will create multiple spaces for dialogue, allowing participants to bring their own organisational challenges to the centre of the process and to work on them collectively, through experience as much as through reflection.
Continuous interaction between facilitators and participants will shape the rhythm of the programme, ensuring that concepts are always grounded in concrete situations and situated contexts.
In addition, the programme counts on meetings with local stakeholders, researchers, artists and institutional actors for enriching this ecosystem and fostering an interdisciplinary perspective and unexpected connections

Across the three days, the journey aims to progressively build a shared language of contemporary cultural leadership — an evolving glossary of practices, concepts and methodologies that participants can carry back into their organisations as a resource for reflection, action and transformation.

The programme is designed with the day-to-day responsibilities of participants in mind, and will also include dedicated time for everyone to work autonomously.

THE FACILITATORS

The programme is co-created with Giuliana Ciancio.

Giuliana Ciancio (PhD) is a researcher, cultural manager and lecturer with over 20 years of experience in the performing arts, international cultural cooperation and European cultural policy. She has collaborated with public and private institutions at national and international levels, as well as with European networks, and has led large-scale cultural cooperation projects.

Currently, she is co-founder of the Italian social enterprise Liv.in.g. (Live Internationalization Gateway), a board member of the international network On The Move (Belgium/France) and she serves on the founding council of Fondazione Fitzcarraldo (Italy). Giuliana regularly lectures in graduate and postgraduate programmes, contributes as a keynote speaker to conferences and professional meetings, and publishes widely in academic and professional journals on cultural activism, participatory practices, political emotions, and cultural policy.

Throughout the three days, she will work alongside Luisella Carnelli and Dea Vidovic – researchers and practitioners actively engaged in the international cultural cooperation realm, to moderate and facilitate the workshop.

Luisella Carnelli holds a PhD in Theory and History of Theatre and a Master’s degree in Entrepreneurship in the Performing Arts. For over 15 years, she has worked as a researcher and consultant at Fondazione Fitzcarraldo and the Cultural Observatory of Piemonte. Her expertise focuses on cultural production and organisation, with particular attention to audience engagement, participatory practices and the relationship between culture and well-being.

She has been actively involved as researcher and trainer in numerous EU-funded projects addressing cultural participation and evaluation processes, including ADESTE, CONNECT, Be SpectACTive!, Dancing Museums, Empowering Dance, Adeste+, Dance Well and EU Have a Dream!. Her work aims to strengthen the connection between artistic practices, communities and evidence-based cultural policies.

Dea Vidović is a Senior Research Assistant at the Institute for Development and International Relations in Zagreb, within the Department for Culture and Communication. From 2012 to 2024, she served as Director of the Kultura Nova Foundation, where she established a Research and Development Programme and coordinated extensive research on cultural development and policy, including working conditions, participatory governance, mobility and the impact of crises on the cultural sector.

She has acted as advisor, researcher or coordinator in European research projects funded by Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe, such as OpenHeritage, INVENT and In Situ. Dea has published widely in Croatian and international journals, edited several publications, and has extensive experience in university teaching and professional training. She has also been actively involved in the governance of international networks, including ENCATC and Philea.

AN INSPIRING WORKING ENVIRONMENT

To encourage depth, trust, and meaningful exchanges, the CLIMB#1 workshop will take place in an intimate, remote setting, at the Castello di San Sebastiano Po (Chivasso, Piemonte). The castle provides seminar and conference rooms, while giving full access to nature, in a historic edifice inviting reflection.

The location is easily accessible:

approximately 40 minutes from Turin Caselle Airport
approximately 15 minutes from Chivasso railway station (15-20 mn journey from Torino Porta Susa)
less than one hour from Turin city centre

CLIMB - Leadership Development Programme

WHAT IS CLIMB

THE PROGRAMME

Which topics will we tackle?

Which methods will we use?

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

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