Culture as a Force for Democracy — Professor Dominika Kasprowicz at the Kościuszko Forum 09.06.2026
On 2 June, the European Solidarity Centre in Gdańsk hosted the second edition of the Kościuszko Forum, dedicated to supporting Belarusian democratic communities. This year’s edition was held under the motto “Culture as a Force for Democracy.”
The event was attended by Dr hab. Dominika Kasprowicz, Professor at the Jagiellonian University and Director of the Villa Decius Institute for Culture, who was one of the Forum’s speakers. Her presence was a natural extension of Villa Decius’s mission: fostering dialogue, freedom of expression, human rights and international cultural cooperation.
The Forum brought together representatives of Belarusian communities, public institutions, European organisations, experts, activists and cultural practitioners. Discussions focused on how culture can build community, strengthen democracy and help resist authoritarianism — values that lie at the heart of the Villa Decius Institute for Culture, a place where dialogue is not just a slogan, but a daily practice.
Photo: Grzegorz Mehring / ECS Archive
The Forum brought together representatives of Belarusian communities, public institutions, European organisations, experts, activists and cultural practitioners. Discussions focused on how culture can build community, strengthen democracy and help resist authoritarianism — values that lie at the heart of the Villa Decius Institute for Culture, a place where dialogue is not just a slogan, but a daily practice.
Photo: Grzegorz Mehring / ECS Archive