On June 24, 2025, the final training session of the second cycle of Work In Progress was held. Work In Progress began in 2024 with a first series of trainings on anti-racism in the cultural sector . Following the publication of the informative guide after this first series, Africalia and RABKO (the Brussels Arts Network) organized five new trainings on anti-racism from February to June 2025. You can now listen again to the key points of this second season in theWork In Progress podcast .
Five sessions on anti-racism
The second edition of Work In Progress kicked off on February 20 at Cinema Nova in Brussels. Carla Mascia, a sociologist at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, led an introductory session on social inequality in the arts and presented her research, "Inequal Arts."
During the second session, which took place at Espace Magh on March 27, we explored spaces and audiences with Loubna El Wahabi (Espace Magh), Elen Sylla (Atelier Graphoui), and Michel Steyaert (Centre Vidéo de Bruxelles). How can we rethink our mediation practices to make our cultural venues welcoming spaces for all?
In April, at the Théâtre de la Vie, we discussed possible strategies and partnerships to ensure inclusive programming with artist Pitcho and expert Mireille-Tsheusi Robert.
For the fourth session, we traveled to Kaaitheater on May 20, where Barbara Van Lindt and Nadia El-Boubsi discussed an anti-racist approach to governance with experts Aïda Yancy and Lyne Bnc. We focused particularly on the how and why of inclusion in the workplace, in management bodies, and in application procedures.
On June 24, we concluded the training series with a retrospective session hosted by Pilar. Researchers Amal Miri (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Empact vzw, and Nuff Said) and Jacinthe Mazzocchetti (UCLouvain), diversity experts Annelies Baes (Actiris) and Emilie Frankinet (BRUXEO), and cultural operators and artists Aminata Demba (actress), Cathy Min Jung (Le Rideau), and Serenella Martufi (Medeber Teatro) reviewed the key points of the series. We focused on the place of racialized women and migrant artists in the performing arts, the legal framework regarding diversity, and an anti-racist approach to programming and mediation.
Podcast
The first season of Work In Progress resulted in an informative guide. For the second season, Africalia and RABKO have created a bilingual podcast—in collaboration with Babelfish. Experts from the five different sessions share best practices, recommendations, experiences, and concerns in five consecutive episodes. You can listen to the podcasthere .
"In 2025 in Belgium, there are very, very, very few cultural institutions run by people from diverse backgrounds. The challenge for me is that a boat can be steered by someone from the diaspora, and that it's not just the sailors inside." – Pitcho
Also check out the informative guide published following the first cycle of Work In Progress!
©Natalia Roshchenko
