Language and culture are inexorably linked. In addition to programming that is explicitly focussed on language, the Armenian Communities Department also supports initiatives that are meant to augment cultural production in Western Armenian. The Department’s approach to culture goes far beyond the preservation of the old and the classic. Rather, it focuses on creativity, innovation and the transformative power of culture in the 21^st century. If diasporan communities are to be sustainable in the long run, the younger generation needs to create its own culture in its own language, especially in the Diaspora.

The following four key concepts will guide the selection of new projects to be supported through the Cultural Creativity pillar:

1. Creation and Innovation: The focus here is on creating new culture in Armenian, in order to inspire, facilitate, and support novelty and contemporaneity in the cultural and creative sectors in the Western Armenian language.
2. Social Transformation: The role of culture is central in social transformation. It is important to support cultural changemakers through initiatives that challenge current realities and stimulate alternative imaginaries harnessing democratic values, inclusivity, diversity and equity.
3. Sustainable Shifts and Futures: The cultural and creative sectors can contribute to positive shifts of attitudes and practices towards a more environmentally sustainable future. Arts and culture are crucial elements in addressing the climate crisis.
4. Regenerative Approaches to Cultural Heritage: A forward-looking understanding of cultural heritage leads to a renewed vision that connects the past, the present and the future. Cultural heritage and contemporary creation critically engage with one another, and ultimately, together they create the heritage of the future.

A wide range of media will be considered, including the arts, inter-and-multi-disciplinary and hybrid forms of expressions, literature, essays and other critical works, graphic works, new music, videos, installations, animations, all forms of creative broadcasting, and any other form of cultural expression, particularly in Western Armenian.