Since the very beginnings of the BSCC international cooperation has been one of the most important Centre’s functions. The BSCC was established with view of looking for new opportunities of cultural cooperation with other Baltic countries. After Poland joined the European Union, the Centre significantly expanded its scope of activity. Moreover, when Lawrence Okey Ugwu became our Managing Director, our projects began to reach beyond the European continent.  

The BSCC's international cooperation is multi-layered. On the one hand, it means co-shaping culture policy in the Baltic Sea region. On the other hand, it is acting in international networks of culture operators and in an ongoing cooperation with regions and cities in Europe. Participation of the Tricity artists in numerous international projects, cultural exchanges, Internet platforms and so on -  are the effects of this activity.

1. river//cities
The River//Cities is a partnership between cultural, environmental and political initiatives which work in their cities to interact with and develop their rivers or waterfronts as cultural spaces.
It is a network for the international exchange of ideas, projects, experiences, and expertise. The River//Cities Platform is about dialogue, about creative synergies that develop through our common interests and dedication to the river as a meeting place, a cultural space, and as a symbol for the evolution of a city.

2. Culture Action Europe
In 2005 the BSCC became a part of EFAH - European Forum for the Arts and Heritage, which currently acts under the name Culture Action Europe.  The CAE's aim is to enhance the role of culture and art in creating the balanced development in Europe. Except for the position of a spokesman for culture in Europe, Culture Action Europe monitors UE's activity in the domain of culture and informs the network’smembers about planned initiatives, programmes, funds and trends.   

3. www.culturebase.net
In 2005 the BSCC joined partners  from Denmark, Germany, Sweden and Great Britain centered around www.culturebase.net. The fundamental part is co-maintenance of the portal, which was set up so as to promote artists participating in projects of every partner. These artists are mainly from outside Europe. They are significant to their culture, but not well known on our continent and details concerning them are almost unavailable. Currently, there are more than a thousand group and single artist portraits on the portal.

4. The Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue Between Cultures
The foundation is a network reaching beyond Europe. Established on the initiative of the European Commission and EUROMED Committee, the foundation supports widely defined cooperation as well as cultural and intellectual exchange between the representatives coming from the two coastlines of the Mediterranean Sea. It also carries out minor programmes that promote disseminating the idea of the dialogue and international comprehension.  One of the BSCC's projects, "Radio Moves", Polish-German radio journalism workshops in 2008 joined the campaign "1001 Activities for the Dialogue", the crucial action of the ALF.

5. Cities on the edge
It is a cultural partnership cooperation of six cities: Liverpool, Bremen, Istanbul, Marseille, Naples and Gdańsk. What these cities have in common is the geographical location “on the edge”, which defines the identity of the city, similar traditions and functions. These are port cities with rich history and culture. Moreover, each of them has been or will be contesting for the title of the European Capital of Culture.
“Cities on the edge” aims at starting discussions and exchanging cultural experience; it offers an opportunity to get to know each other better and thus find similarities and differences. Being a partner of “Cities on the Edge”, the Baltic Sea Culture Centre together with “Łaźnia” Center of Modern Art organized twice (in 2008 and in 2009) the action Streetwaves.

6. we are more
we are more (2010-2013) is a Europe-wide arts advocacy campaign set up by Culture Action Europe. The ultimate goal of the campaign is to contribute to a strengthened recognition of the role of arts and culture in the development of our European societies. The concrete campaign objectives focus on improving the quality and quantity of support that the sector receives from 2 key EU policies. The aim is for the campaign to function both as an eye-opener for policy-makers at local, regional and national level, and as a mobilisation and professional development tool for the sector.

7. Stage Network Europe
The Stage Europe Network foresees the collaboration of six cultural organizations from six different European countries: France, Germany, Iceland, Norway, The Netherlands, and Poland. The principal aim of the network is to connect different organizations that work in the music or culture field, exchanging competences between expertise, developing long-term projects in which young European bands can be involved in. The main common goal is to promote the active participation of young people in music in an European context and give them an intercultural learning experience.

Most often the cooperation takes place with twin cities and regions or organizations whose aims are similar to our cultural or artistic interests.
This kind of cooperation enables us to make friends with partners, to get familiar with their work and expectations.
We lead and co-organize projects which through bilateral artistic activity join artists. We are also involved in cultural exchanges, thanks to which Pomeranian artists have a chance to present their artistic work to a broader, international audience.  On the other hand, we invite foreign artists to our events.

1. Agit Polska
For several years we have been cooperating with Agit Polska - an organization in Bremen - a partner city of Gdańsk. It became our partner in one of our international projects "Music Bridges" (2008), which we built through exchanges of young musicians and their joint workshops concluding in  Polish-German concerts in Bremen and in Gdańsk.
It was already while we were organizing "Musical Bridges" that we came up with an idea of the next common project, this time combining numerous art forms: dance, music and video installations. The aim has remained the same - enabling the artists from both cities to work together, shape an interdisciplinary project and take the responsibility for its final form. "Pixel Fall 3D" was premiered in Gdansk in June 2009 and this moment was the beginning of the journey of the mobile project through festivals, presentations and artistic reviews in Europe.  The Bremen version of the project got numerous favourable reviews.

2. Mephisto 97,6
A radio at the University of Leipzig we have been cooperating with since 2007. Joint workshops for Polish and German journalists, mostly students, took place twice - in Gdansk and in Leipzig. The workshops consisting, first of all, in writing scripts for radio documentaries became an opportunity to get to know interesting people or institutions and to expand knowledge on subjects important for the participants. Above all, it became an opportunity to get acquainted with the attitudes to life and work of German/Polish peers

3. Noord Holland
A broad bilateral cooperation was a cultural one between the province of Pomerania and Dutch province of Noord Holland, which was coordinated by the BSCC and took place between 2005 and 2007.  A dozen or so artists, curators and scientists from each side participated. The outcomes of the cooperation were among others:
 - dance workshops,
 - a joint exhibition of artists from both regions,
 - a debate and workshops on the role of water basins in shaping city space.

The cooperation meant also a number of study tours, which helped to expand connections. For us it resulted in the project initiated in 2006 and still continuing One Minute Film and Video Festival "The One Minutes" as well as in artists' exchanges and their temporary visits.

One of the most important projects that the cooperation with Noord Holland gave rise to is "The Canteen". The performance co-produced by European Solidarity Centre and Solidarity Centre Foundation took place within the Solidarity Festival’09.
It all started after the visit of Amsterdam based Polly Maggoo theatre in Gdańsk and a number of meetings with most colourful people taking part in the events of 1970s and 1980s in Gdańsk Shipyard. On the basis of the discussions a play "De Kantine" was developed. It was premiered in the Netherlands in summer 2007 and the Polish version was staged in Gdańsk Shipyard in August 2009. The authors of the performance (in which incidentally eating and music play a huge part) have managed to present a fragment of our history without loftiness and superfluous judgment.

Co-shaping cultural policy in the Baltic Europe
After establishing the BSCC in 1992 the Baltic Europe found itself confronting challenges and opportunities quite new for this part of Europe. The changes after the breakthrough of the 1980s and 1990s for the first time within many years made the Baltic more of a unifying and fascinating link rather than a source of divisions and unavailability. Work connected with familiarizing, lobbying and building mutual curiosity had begun - also for the Baltic Sea Culture Centre... The BSCC started to voice its views in this part of Europe - by means of the projects carried out, substantial network of contacts, cooperation with numerous cultural institutions and artists from the region.
    
The situation around the Baltic Sea underwent significant changes also after 2004, when not only Poland, but also Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia joined the European Union. On the one hand, Europe was opening up for us. On the other, a challenge of creating a new balance on the Baltic Sea had to be faced.

Since 2005 the Baltic Sea Culture Centre has been running an ARS BALTICA Secretariat, which has been connecting the Baltic Sea states in a cultural collaboration since 1991.  The power and uniqueness of AB is deeply rooted in the fact that it was established on the initiative of the ministries of culture from the Baltic Sea countries. Remaining in close contact with culture operators in the region it develops cultural policy. Not only does this connection consist in a mutual support, but also in a crucial feedback from "culture practitioners". ARS BALTICA's activity is coordinated by the Organizing Committee consisting of representatives of the member states from all around the Baltic . The role of the Secretariat is also important – among its tasks is being in contact with regional culture operators, organizing two annual AB conferences, communicating within the network and administering the Internet portal www.ars-baltica.net. Granting the AB Secretariat to the BSCC was not only a distinction, but also a proof of trust for the institution, especially that in 2007 the Organizing Committee prolonged the activity of the Secretariat in Gdansk for the next three-year term of office till the end of 2009.
 

We are not afraid of big projects – based on a good concept, innovative and inspiring ones provide an opportunity to get to know and present new artists, ideas and tendencies. However, big international projects need huge costs difficult to cover by cultural institutions’ budgets only. That is why gaining external financial support is so important.

The biggest international projects of the BSCC accomplished so far (until 2009) were: SEAS (2004) and Europe Now | Europe Next (2007), which were funded by the European Union program Culture 2000 and 2007.  Both projects were conducted with partners focused around culturebase.net and the BSCC was a project leader of both of them.

• SEAS is Chris Torch's (Intercult/Stockholm) idea: he gathered the invited artists for the first time in 2001. People eager to participate were travelling for two years and visited port cities on the Adriatic and Baltic Seas.  They were absorbing the atmosphere and activating their imagination. They brought the projects back to the cities which inspired them: Klaipėda, Gdańsk, Rijeka, Kaliningrad, Liepāja, etc. The Gdańsk version was accomplished in September 2004 and all performances, installations, presentations and workshops took place on the Shipyard premises, which the artists had visited a year before. Within the project the BSCC’s production "Odys-SEAS" by Leszek Bzdyl, Robert Rumas and Piotr Wyrzykowski with music by Mikolaj Trzaska and Adam Witkowski was presented. After this edition, SEAS had its next versions, this time with partners from the Black Sea and without our participation.

• Europe Now | Europe Next a project making use of the newest technologies and exploring the Internet WEB 2.0 for the use of artists, artistic development, a discourse between an author and his audience.  The blocks which appeared in the project were performed live and were correspondingly presented on the EN|EN website (www. europe.culturebase.net).

• We also raised funds for the Festival of the World's Cultures "Window  onto the World". Its fourth edition (2008) was included into the celebration of European Year of Intercultural Dialogue and was funded by the European Union.  Participation in the ERDM was a great distinction, a proof of trust and recognition of the format of the festival by Polish and European culture operators. Thanks to the financial support we managed to expand the structure of the festival and fulfil the plans we had had in minds for a long time.

• Organizing projects together with representatives of other Baltic countries we also take advantage of regional programmes, e.g. Festival of Music Inspired by Folklore “Sounds of the North” was subsidized twice by NORDIC CULTURE FUND, which supports projects in which artists from Scandinavian countries take part.