Taike develops its international activities
The Arts Promotion Centre Finland (Taike) has completed a strategic overview of how internationalisation is embedded in the agency’s activities. The agency's statutory tasks include promoting international opportunities for artists and art, and developing internationalisation has been one of the priorities of the agency's strategy, which continues until 2030. The work now completed outlines the current themes and measures that will help achieve this goal.
A wide range of Taike’s stakeholders has been involved in the strategy process, with special focus on those actors, funding bodies and artists who are actively involved in international activities. Over 100 experts have participated in the process in various ways. In addition, various studies and Taike's internal expertise have been utilised to support the work.
“Over the past year, we have already been able to strengthen collaborations and partnerships with many actors promoting internationalisation. We have made connections and highlighted the views that have emerged also in the planning of the growth strategy for the creative economy. It is encouraging that even the strategy work has already yielded concrete benefits for the community,” comments Maria Pirkkalainen-Barber, Internationalisation Expert at Taike.
Taike’s strategic goal is to strengthen the international scope of art and culture, as well as the opportunities for sustainable growth. The strategy aims to achieve this by playing an active role in strengthening international activities and partnerships through both funding and expertise. The agency is strengthening its strategic collaboration with actors promoting the internationalisation of the arts and culture sector. In addition, Taike will work more closely with other government agencies to make art and culture one of Finland’s attractive factors.
“The internationalisation of art and culture requires clear roles, divisions of responsibilities, target-setting and reciprocity. We in Finland have also not yet sufficiently addressed the demands set by the global environment, for example in cultural diplomacy. As a Nordic welfare state, we should also take the lead in promoting artistic freedom.
Taike can act as a trendsetter in internationalisation. Thanks to the strategy work, we have been able to define several ways in which our own work towards internationalisation will be more focused, and we will continue to maintain and develop dialogue with actors promoting internationalisation in the future as well,” says Kaisa Rönkkö, Director of Taike.
Taike is due to merge with the National Audiovisual Institute (KAVI)to form the Arts and Culture Agency Finland as of 1 January 2026. The measures have been developed with Taike’s funding and expertise-related functions in mind, but the strategic overview also provides a strong foundation for future thinking.
Measures include development funding for reciprocity, a mentoring model and an English-language application system
The first concrete measures will be visible already this year. Taike will switch to a completely trilingual application system starting in autumn 2025. This will allow applications to be submitted in English in all application categories.
A new development grant will also be introduced later this year that aims to strengthen long-term reciprocal networks. The agency will collect more comprehensive data on the international impact of government grants and how this is reflected in the criteria for awarding government grants. Taike will also develop financial advice related to international funding.
With regard to networks, one theme is to actively strengthen cross-disciplinary and cross-administrative collaboration. This will be done especially by facilitating networking and maintaining a current knowledge base and situation picture. Taike plans to organise an internationalisation forum next year. In addition, Taike will strengthen its strategic collaboration with actors promoting the internationalisation of the arts and culture sector, such as information centres and cultural institutes.
The agency is also launching a new cross-disciplinary international mentoring model with Artist Professors. In the first phase, the mentors will include Monika Fagerholm, Maija Hirvanen, Sanna Kannisto, Elena Näsänen, Iiro Rantala, Laura Ruohonen, Kirsikka Saari, Helena Sandman, Luis Sartori Do Vale and Jenni-Juulia Wallinheimo-Heimonen.
Taike has been actively involved in the planning of the Cultural Policy Report and the development of the Creative Economy Growth Strategy. The agency will participate in the implementation of both measures and will increase its collaboration with Business Finland.
In its own international networks, Taike is particularly strengthening collaboration with its Nordic agency and network partners. Taike is already partnering with the Ministry of Education and Culture in implementing, for example, the Nordic Diversity Connections in Arts and Culture seminar in October 2025, which is part of the programme of Finland’s presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
Further information
Kaisa Rönkkö, Director
[email protected], t. +358 295 330 874
Henri Terho, Head of Arts Support
[email protected], t. +358 295 330 901