Culture as a tool for social cohesion, health, digital innovation, scientific dissemination, and heritage preservation. These are some of the lines shared by the five finalist projects of the Impulsa Cultura 2026 Award, selected during the Demo Day held on Thursday at the RBA Auditorium before an audience mainly composed of representatives from the business, institutional, and cultural sectors.
The ten semifinalist projects presented their proposals to the jury on a day that served to showcase the transformative potential of culture and its capacity to generate social, economic, and territorial impact. After the presentations, the jury announced the five finalists who will compete for the Impulsa Cultura Award, endowed with 15,000 euros, which will be presented during La Nit de l'Empresa i la Cultura, scheduled for November 9.
The selected projects are the Culture Area of the Fundació Girona Est, Arts en Salut, IP2U, Open Brains, and the OMAC-Orquestra de Músiques d'Arrel de Catalunya.
- The Fundació Girona Est has been recognized for its work in empowering children and young people through culture, education, and sports in the neighborhoods of Girona Est.
- Arts en Salut, promoted by Hospital Clínic, integrates the arts into the hospital environment to improve the emotional well-being of patients, families, and healthcare professionals.
- IP2U's proposal is aimed at facilitating the legal and transparent circulation of cultural works in the digital environment and strengthening creators' rights.
- Open Brains connects culture and neuroscience through immersive experiences and audiovisual narratives to foster critical thinking and scientific dissemination.
- Completing the list is the OMAC-Orquestra de Músiques d'Arrel de Catalunya, an initiative that draws on the musical traditions of Catalan-speaking territories to generate new contemporary creations and assert the relevance of roots music on current stages.
The other five projects that participated in this edition as semifinalists were Chroma, Espai Obert, Latir Festival, Mangrana, and Rugido Teatre.
Open Brains, recognized with The New Barcelona Post Award
Beyond the selection of finalists, the Demo Day has also served to announce the projects distinguished with the Culture Awards, promoted by collaborating entities of the Fundació Catalunya Cultura.
In this framework, Open Brains has been recognized with The New Barcelona Post Award, valued at 10,000 euros. The award consists of an integral communication strategy aimed at amplifying the project's visibility through reports, interviews, and journalistic content.
The award promoted by The New Barcelona Post has recognized Open Brains for sharing a central concern with the media: "how we build a more critical, more informed, and more prepared society in the face of disinformation," as highlighted by the director of The New Barcelona Post, Elena Busquets.
Busquets added that the project also addresses a fundamental question: "How do we, as a society, regain the capacity for critical thinking. Or even how do we regain confidence in ourselves to have critical thinking."
In addition, the granting of the Irene Vázquez Scholarship from EADA Business School to Ingrid Bolívar, promoter of the Poble de les Arts project, was also announced. The scholarship will allow the entrepreneur to pursue the General Management Program (PDG) at the business school to strengthen her leadership and management skills.
On the other hand, the Xavier Gramona Award has been awarded to Rugido Teatre. Endowed with 4,000 euros, the recognition highlights the work developed by the project during the first phase of the Impulsa Cultura Program and its ability to leverage the training and mentoring tools offered by the initiative.
"The Impulsa Cultura Award, endowed with 15,000 euros, will be presented during La Nit de l'Empresa i la Cultura, scheduled for next November 9"
The Demo Day also featured the participation of publicist and communicator Lluís Bassat, godfather of this year's edition of the Impulsa Cultura Program.
Driven by the Fundació Catalunya Cultura, the Impulsa Cultura Program offers training, mentoring, and acceleration to cultural projects active in Catalonia with the aim of strengthening their management, sustainability, and viability. Year after year, the initiative has consolidated itself as one of the main spaces for connection between the cultural sector and the business world, contributing to demonstrating that culture is also a driver of innovation, development, and social transformation.
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