Debrecen4U March 19, 2026

Cultural Stakeholders from Debrecen and Its Sister City Reflect on Future Together

The Debrecen Cultural Forum provides an opportunity for the city’s cultural stakeholders to meet, while also offering space for joint thinking. A delegation from Debrecen’s sister city, Brno, also took part in the cultural programme held at the Csokonai Forum.

On 18 March, the Debrecen Cultural Forum was held for the third time, once again creating an opportunity for the city’s cultural stakeholders to reflect on Debrecen’s cultural ecosystem together. The focus of the event was on the use of creative spaces, the city’s cultural life and strategy, and the collaborations that shape Debrecen’s cultural identity in the long term.

As before, the aim of the forum, was to bring together in a shared space the experiences of different institutions, cultural professionals, creative communities and audiences. Participants not only shared their insights, but also drew inspiration for future collaborations, thereby strengthening the city’s cultural network. Moderated by Kata Anna Váró, the event was given additional significance by the participation of Debrecen’s sister city, Brno. Organisers emphasised that the experiences and initiatives from Brno served as important inspiration for establishing the Cultural Forum as a platform for shared thinking.

At the event, Veronika Majíčková, Head of the Strategy and Development Division of the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Brno, Lukáš Pavlica, Cooperation Coordinator of the same department, and Simona Augustín, member of the collective leadership of the CO.LABS cultural centre and financial manager of its development project, were welcomed.

In the first presentation of the forum, István Puskás, Deputy Mayor for Culture of Debrecen, introduced the publication titled Debrecen masina, issued by the city, which interprets the functioning of the city’s cultural life in an unconventional way, as a kind of “user manual”. He highlighted that the volume describes a metaphorical system in which Debrecen’s cultural life appears as a machine (Debrecen ex machina), the operation of which is ensured by the active participation of the community. During the presentation, he emphasised that the “components” of this machine are the city’s cultural actors themselves—institutions, creators, organisers and audiences—who connect with one another in different roles. The system is open and flexible: anyone can become part of its operation, and through collaboration new configurations are constantly created.

The Deputy Mayor also noted that the model is based on sustainable operation, continuous feedback and organic development. The publication presents, through various “operating modes”, how the city’s cultural life appears in practice—whether through festivals, community platforms or dialogue-based initiatives. Overall, the publication offers an innovative conceptual framework for interpreting Debrecen’s cultural life. The metaphor of the “machine” makes both the complexity and operability of the system visible, while emphasising the role of the community: that the city’s cultural life is not a fixed structure, but a continuously evolving, collectively operated process. He stressed that the publication was preceded by a series of meetings and joint reflections with the city’s cultural stakeholders.

In the second presentation, participants were introduced to the operation of the CO.LABS cultural centre in Brno. In her presentation, Simona Augustín described CO.LABS as an open, independent and strongly collaboration-based cultural platform that actively supports the development of the region’s cultural sector. She highlighted that the centre’s core principles include interdisciplinarity, accessibility, knowledge sharing and community collaboration, while placing particular emphasis on supporting young and emerging creators and building local and international partnerships.

She emphasised that CO.LABS has recently undergone significant infrastructure development: by 2025, a comprehensive reconstruction resulted in a multifunctional cultural space of more than 3,000 square metres. The new centre includes not only performance spaces, workshops and studios, but also community, creative and residency functions, serving simultaneously as a workspace, meeting point and venue for cultural events. One of the centre’s most important roles is the comprehensive support of creators: it provides not only infrastructure, but also mentoring, production and financial support, as well as opportunities for international networking.

The centre’s programmes—such as residencies, initiatives supporting young talent, or projects addressing the position of women creators—all aim to create a sustainable, collaboration-based cultural environment. Simona Augustín concluded by noting that CO.LABS can be understood as a continuously expanding, living system that both responds to and shapes community needs. Their future plans—implementing hundreds of events, residencies and community programmes—demonstrate that the centre aims to play a defining role in the region’s cultural life in the long term.

The third presentation showcased some of the results of the international Re:Shape the City hackathon organised by the University of Debrecen and the city of Debrecen. As part of the initiative, 16 teams and nearly fifty university students worked on reimagining the city’s community and cultural spaces. At the presentation, the winning weSParK team (Ahmed Alyousify, Thuy Hien Dinh, Ali Tantawy and Yara Elkamshoushy) presented their innovative concept, based on an application that connects community building with urban experiences.

The planned application combines physical activity with cultural exploration. The core idea is that users can discover the city’s cultural values while moving—for example, walking or exploring—making the experience both educational and engaging. The application operates on a playful, gamified logic: it offers routes organised around different categories (such as poets, monuments, historical sites or restaurants), along which checkpoints appear. Users’ progress is tracked, and they are rewarded for completion with badges or “medals”, encouraging further exploration.

The target audience is deliberately broad: essentially anyone open to getting to know the city and its cultural layers better. This is a key strength, as it can appeal simultaneously to locals, young people, tourists and even serve educational purposes.

Following the presentations, the programme continued with a second session focusing on the use of creative spaces. During the panel discussion, different institutional and professional perspectives were brought together: Miklós Péter Balogh, Director of Rocksuli, Leonárd Petró, Communications and Public Relations Officer at the University and National Library of the University of Debrecen, and Balázs Horváth, Head of KraftLab, shared their experiences and thoughts on the topic.

Leonárd Petró highlighted that students at the University of Debrecen’s library feel most at home when the library functions not only as a place for study, but also as a community space. An open, inclusive environment that offers opportunities for learning, meeting and relaxation significantly contributes to students’ ability to connect with both the city and each other. Accordingly, the use of space must be continuously adapted to community needs, whether in terms of programmes, services or even the physical environment.

Miklós Péter Balogh explained, through the example of Rocksuli, that a well-functioning creative space can engage multiple generations. At the institution, different age groups—from young people to adults—come together, which not only makes the community more diverse but also creates new opportunities for learning and collaboration. This kind of openness and flexibility is key to ensuring that a space remains relevant in the long term.

Balázs Horváth, using the example of KraftLab, spoke about how one of the most important characteristics of contemporary community spaces is continuous renewal and the possibility of experimentation. The Telekom Kraft creative space in Debrecen operates as an open workshop where young people can test their ideas without risk, whether in music production, video creation, podcasting or digital development. The available tools and supportive environment make it possible for ideas not only to exist, but to be realised.

Throughout the discussion, the role of innovation was repeatedly emphasised. Participants agreed that community and cultural spaces must continuously respond to changing needs: they must experiment with new formats, pay attention to feedback, and remain open to innovation. Only in this way can they become truly vibrant, popular and sustainable community venues capable of engaging and retaining their audiences in the long term. The forum also provided insight into what new community spaces Debrecen may need, as the audience actively joined the discussion. Feedback from participants clearly pointed in one direction: most highlighted the lack of green, outdoor community spaces.

Several contributors emphasised the need for open, nature-oriented locations that not only serve recreational purposes but can also function as community meeting points and venues for cultural events. Parks, community gardens, temporarily activated urban spaces or even smaller outdoor event venues could all contribute to making urban life more liveable and diverse. These suggestions clearly show that audiences in Debrecen are increasingly seeking spaces where culture, community interaction and the experience of nature come together, and where participation is not necessarily tied to institutional frameworks.

Source and photo credit: debrecen.hu