Artscape strengthens international advocacy through partnership with The Geneva Access Initiative

For over a decade, Artscape has worked beyond the boundaries of cultural production. It’s practice has consistently used artistic processes as a tool for social change—creating spaces where dialogue, participation, and lived experience shape how societies understand inclusion, mental health, and displacement.

This year marks a clear strategic focus: strengthening Artscape’s international presence as a platform for impact and innovative advocacy through arts. As part of this direction, Artscape has launched an International Advisory Board, bringing together strong transatlantic representation from Lithuania, the United States, and Canada. The Board expands the organisation’s reach into global networks and reinforces its role in shaping conversations across sectors and geographies.

Within this trajectory, Artscape is taking a further step by establishing a partnership with The Geneva Access Initiative (GAI), focusing on strengthening its presence in the global arenas where advocacy, policy, and international priorities intersect.

Why Geneva matters

Geneva stands at the centre of international cooperation. It hosts key global institutions, including multiple UN agencies, alongside hundreds of international organisations, diplomatic missions, and foundations shaping responses to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

As an implementing partner of UNHCR, Artscape’s work is already embedded within this global ecosystem. But Geneva is not only about institutions—it is also one of the world’s leading hubs for international events. High-level conferences, policy forums, and cross-sector gatherings take place here year-round, bringing together decision-makers, practitioners, and thought leaders. For Artscape, these are not just events. They are spaces where narratives are shaped—and where new forms of advocacy are increasingly needed.

From artistic practice to advocacy

Artscape’s approach is rooted in a simple but powerful idea: art can shift perspectives in ways that policy alone cannot. Through participatory processes, storytelling, and creative interventions, Artscape brings forward voices that are often excluded from formal discussions—refugees, young people, individuals in closed institutions, and communities experiencing social isolation. These are not abstract “beneficiaries,” but active contributors to how resilience, identity, and belonging are understood.

The partnership with GAI enables Artscape to bring these methodologies into international spaces more intentionally—positioning art not only as expression, but as a form of advocacy.

Bridging sectors, shaping dialogue

Geneva offers a unique environment where humanitarian action, human rights, development, and culture intersect. Artscape operates precisely at these intersections. Its work demonstrates that artistic processes can foster resilience and community cohesion, and that creative expression can open space for dialogue where other approaches cannot.

By strengthening its presence in Geneva, Artscape contributes to a growing recognition that culture is not peripheral—but essential—to addressing complex social challenges.

With GAI’s support, Artscape will engage more strategically in:

• Key international events and forums in Geneva 
• Cross-sector discussions on inclusion, mental health, and social cohesion 
• Platforms where cultural approaches can influence policy thinking 
• New opportunities to scale the organisation’s impact 

The Geneva Access Initiative is led by Mathilde Garcia-Lopez, an experienced partnerships and donor engagement professional with a background across international organisations. Her deep understanding of Geneva’s ecosystem—both formal and informal—supports Artscape in navigating and engaging with the spaces where influence is built.

The partnership between Artscape and The Geneva Access Initiative began during the UNHCR regional partners meeting in Geneva in 2025 and has continued to grow and strengthen since. At a time when NGOs worldwide are under increasing pressure due to significant funding cuts, such collaborations are becoming essential—encouraging not only new partnerships, but also a rethinking of existing models, strategies, and ways of creating sustainable impact.