Rebuilding the Swiss cultural industry post-pandemic: report by Fondation Lombard Odier and the Center for Philanthropy Studies

A report outlining recommendations for how donors can contribute to building a resilient post-pandemic cultural sector.

Entitled “Lessons learned from funding culture in Switzerland during the pandemic”, the report launched in November at the MAMCO in Geneva and in December at the Fondation Beyeler in Basel, builds on insights from Fondation Lombard Odier’s two-year programme to support cultural institutions in Switzerland during and after the pandemic, and incorporates research carried out by the Center for Philanthropy Studies (CEPS) in Basel.

Aiming to identify the lessons and recommendations that can be drawn from the Covid-19 pandemic, the study examines the crucial role of the cultural industries in Switzerland and the severe consequences of the health crisis on the sector. In 2019, the industry’s total value added amounted to CHF 15.2 billion, or 2.1% of Swiss GDP. Yet during the pandemic, many cultural workers fell through the cracks of government support, and several institutions faced extreme operational challenges.

The cultural sector faced pre-pandemic challenges and demonstrated adaptability

However, this challenging period also accelerated innovation and triggered debates on problems that predated the pandemic. The report illustrates five key trends that have been brought into sharp focus: digitalisation, environmental sustainability, social security for cultural sector employees, fair practice and cultural participation. It highlights how the sector can adapt in each of these areas, for example through increased training on digitalisation and the building of diverse teams with specialist skills, and explores the potential of innovative financing methods such as impact investing.

The report also features interviews with key actors from the Swiss cultural sector, who discuss the impact of the pandemic on their own institutions.

Lionel Bovier, Director of MAMCO Genève noted: “The demands on the cultural sector have continued to multiply over the past decade, including ecological or societal demands, and for more inclusiveness and representativeness. The weight of these demands should not be borne by cultural institutions alone. To improve and live up to what is expected of them, institutions need additional resources and support in all areas of society.”

The conclusions of the report are optimistic regarding the future potential of the industry, whilst underlining the importance of philanthropic support for these recommendations to become reality.

Funding the sector

The study concludes with seven concrete recommendations for how donors can contribute to building a resilient, post-pandemic cultural sector. For example, by incentivising social, environmental and fair cultural creation through funding criteria, and supporting knowledge transfer and co-operation projects. The report also highlights that state funding alone is not sufficient and must be supplemented by financial support from charitable foundations and other philanthropic actors.

The seven recommendations for how donors can to contribute to the industry.
 

• RECOMMENDATION 1

Move away from an exclusive focus on production and include more open-ended support.
 

• RECOMMENDATION 2

Finance capacity building to get cultural organisations ready to seize opportunities in digitalisation, environmental sustainability, fair practice and cultural participation
 

• RECOMMENDATION 3

Incentivise social, environmental and/ or fair cultural creation through funding criteria
 

• RECOMMENDATION 4

Direct funds to topical agenda setting and visibility
 

• RECOMMENDATION 5

Remain open to alternative formats
 

• RECOMMENDATION 6

Support knowledge transfer and co-operation projects
 

• RECOMMENDATION 7

Experiment with innovative and impact-oriented funding methods

Beyond pure monetary value, innovative methods of financing including impact investing are of key importance to the cultural sector, as they allow funding to directly target key demands of the industry and expand the capital pool. In a sector which is dominated by traditional point-to-point grant applications, the report recommends involving cultural professionals and other funding agencies early on in the process, in order to allocate funds more efficiently to the production of cultural goods, as per the recommendations laid out.