Alter Natives

What Alter Natives does

Alter Natives is a French non-profit association (association loi 1901) founded in 2010 and headquartered in Montreuil, Île-de-France. The organization develops participatory cultural and educational programs that engage youth aged 14–25 from diverse social backgrounds with the provenance histories of non-European objects held in European museums, with a particular focus on colonial-era cultural goods from French-speaking West Africa. Its flagship initiative, Zone de Contact/Objets d'ailleurs, is complemented by specialized programs including Mobiles Mémoires (video workshops in port cities), BREATHE! (Erasmus+ pedagogical toolkit), Retour sur Benin City (performance-based restitution research), Samba Sadio 1875 (exhibition of colonial-era goods in Senegal), Cycle Moi l'Histoire (bicycle heritage tours), Multi Histoire Afrique (cross-historical methodology), and INDIGOGENES (ethnobotany intercultural project).

The organization operates a diverse partnership model with major European museums (Louvre, Musée du Quai Branly, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dunkerque, Guimet), Senegalese and Beninese museums and universities, French government ministries, the European Union (Europe Creative, Erasmus+), local authorities (CAF Paris, Mairie de Montreuil, Est Ensemble), and foundations (Fondation de France, FONJEP). Programs are delivered through workshops, cultural stays, debate evenings, conferences, exhibitions, and a bi-monthly radio program on Radio Soleil. All programs use participatory co-creation methodologies where youth participants conduct research, produce documentary films, and co-curate exhibitions.

The business model is grant-dependent: revenue is primarily sourced from public and institutional grants (French ministries, EU programs, local authorities), supplemented by donations and crowdfunding via HelloAsso, and a modest €5 annual membership fee. Project participation is free. The organization has experienced significant financial pressure in recent years, reportedly losing 4 employees and seeing its budget divided by three over three years, and is actively evolving its governance toward greater volunteer involvement. There is no technology product, no app, and no proprietary software platform — Alter Natives operates as a program-delivery NGO rather than a technology entity.

Name

Alter Natives

Legal name

Alter Natives

Website

https://alter-natives.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Alter Natives is a French non-profit association founded in 2010 that runs participatory cultural programs engaging youth aged 14–25 in researching the provenance of colonial-era objects in European museums, delivering workshops, exhibitions, and heritage exchanges across France, Senegal, and Benin.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Education and Participatory Arts

NAICS

Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural Heritage, Arts & Archaeology Service Programs (EDAIAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Indigenous, Ethnic & Folk Arts/Heritage Organizations (BPAGAHAI), Language Immersion & Cultural Exchange Programs (THAKAGAE)

Keywords

• Cultural heritage education
• Youth engagement programs
• Decolonial museum practice
• Heritage restitution projects
• Participatory arts association

Headquarters

HQ city

Montreuil

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public and Institutional Grants: Alter Natives operates primarily through public funding, institutional grants, and subsidies from French government bodies, European Union programs, and local authorities. The association has seen budget reductions and staffing challenges in recent years.
2. Donations and Crowdfunding: Individual donations and crowdfunding campaigns for specific projects such as the Samba Sadio 1875 exhibition, conducted through platforms like HelloAsso.
3. Membership Fees: Annual membership fee of 5 euros required for participation in projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Alter Natives is a non-profit cultural association that runs participatory programs engaging youth aged 14-25 in exploring the acquisition histories of extra-European objects held by European museums. Through flagship offerings such as Zone de Contact/Objets d'ailleurs, Mobiles Mémoires video workshops, Cycle Moi l'Histoire bicycle tours, BREATHE! educational toolkits, and the Samba Sadio 1875 exhibition project, the organization delivers free heritage education activities in partnership with major French and Senegalese museums, schools, and cultural institutions. Programming is delivered through workshops, stays, debates, performances, and co-curated exhibitions, with participation funded by public grants, foundations, and a €5 annual membership fee.

Product overview

Alter Natives is a non-profit cultural and educational association (NGO) that operates as a single unified program portfolio rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization centers on its flagship program Zone de Contact/Objets d'ailleurs, which provides participatory methodologies for youth to explore museum object acquisition histories. From this core program derive multiple specialized offerings: BREATHE! provides educational tools and manuals for European youth heritage projects; Mobiles Mémoires delivers creative video workshops in port cities; Cycle Moi l'Histoire conducts heritage bicycle tours; Multi Histoire Afrique facilitates multi-historical exchanges with African youth; Retour sur Benin City creates museum performances on Nigerian Bronzes; and Samba Sadio 1875 produces participatory exhibitions. Supporting these programs are ancillary offerings including film productions, debate evenings (Soirées-débats), school workshops, and cultural stays.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Zone de Contact/Objets d'ailleurs: Flagship program exploring the history of acquisition of extra-European objects in European museums through participatory approaches with youth.
• Mobiles Mémoires
• Retour sur Benin City
• Samba Sadio 1875
• Cycle Moi l'Histoire
• BREATHE!
• INDIGOGENES

Products and services

• Zone de Contact/Objets d'ailleurs Participatory cultural program engaging youth aged 14-25 in exploring the acquisition history of extra-European objects in European museums and developing inclusive, collaborative heritage projects. Free to participants, with an annual membership fee of €5.
• Mobiles Mémoires Creative video workshop program for youth exploring migration, translocation and multicultural exchange themes through stays in French port cities and international destinations, with co-produced documentary output. Delivered free to participants.
• BREATHE! Erasmus+-funded European project that produces educational tools, manuals and pedagogical kits for conducting youth projects on African heritage objects in European museums. Targeted at youth workers, cultural educators and museum pedagogy teams across Europe.
• Cycle Moi l'Histoire Heritage bicycle tour program in Paris exploring figures of colonial resistance and anti-imperialist struggles in interwar Paris. Free for youth participants, delivered as guided cycling visits with cultural mediation.
• Multi Histoire Afrique Multi-historical approach project enabling youth to confront colonial French sources with African oral histories, focused particularly on restitution debates. Delivered through binational youth exchanges.
• Retour sur Benin City Museum performance program in which youth research the history of Nigerian Bronzes from Benin City pillaged in 1897 and create theatrical performances on restitution. Performed at European partner museums.
• Samba Sadio 1875 Participatory exhibition project that circulated 8 cultural artifacts taken during the 1875 battle in Senegal from the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dunkerque to Senegalese museums, co-created with youth from France and Senegal. Marks the first French association-led circulation of looted colonial-era cultural goods to Senegalese museums.
• INDIGOGÈNES Intercultural project exploring the history of indigo plants between France, the Caribbean and West Africa, combining ethnobotany, museum visits and youth exchanges with partner school École du Breuil.

Quantifiable outcome

• 21 young people co-curated the Samba Sadio 1875 exhibition
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Mairie de MontreuilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for room availability, cinema involvement, and festival support. Also supports Multi Histoire Abomey through international solidarity.
• YEAD NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean network of cultural actors formed around the YEAD project (2016-2019), focusing on youth cultural audience development.
• Musée du Quai BranlycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on the contre-enquête exhibition about the sailboat from the Dakar-Djibouti Mission (1931-1933). Alter Natives youth participants contributed research.
• Musée des Beaux-Arts de DunkerquecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Samba Sadio 1875 consortium, loaning 8 cultural goods taken during the 1875 battle for exhibition in Senegal.
• Musée Régional de Thiès (Sénégal)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Samba Sadio 1875 consortium, hosting the exhibition October-December 2025. Part of a three-museum consortium with CRDS and Dunkerque.
• Musée du CRDS Saint-Louis (Sénégal)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Samba Sadio 1875 consortium, hosting the exhibition January-February 2026. Part of a three-museum consortium with Thiès and Dunkerque.
• Université Cheikh Anta Diop de DakarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in the Samba Sadio 1875 project, providing historical expertise and research collaboration.
• Comme Vous EmoicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdministrative residence host, an espace dedicated to encounters between the public and artistic creation. Provides meeting space and hosts events.
• Université Gaston Berger de Saint-Louis (Sénégal)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for study days and research collaboration on African heritage restitution.
• Institut Français du SénégalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of the March 24, 2026 study day 'Réparer l'absence' and support for Samba Sadio 1875 project.
• Université Paris 8minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner providing research support and historical expertise for heritage projects.
• Université de LilleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for historical research and provenance studies.
• Association entr'aideminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner from Périchaux neighborhood, specialized in personal assistance services, providing inter-generational center space for project activities.
• Ecomusée du Val de BièvreminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMuseum partner for Zone de Contact/Périchaux project, exploring heritage representations with youth.
• Archives NationalesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Zone de Contact/Périchaux project, providing archival resources for heritage research.
• Mairie de RomainvilleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner municipality supporting cultural projects and hosting events at associative projects salon.
• Mairie de BagnoletminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner municipality supporting cultural projects including Multi Histoire Abomey.
• ONG SDC (Liban)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership with Lebanese NGO SDC on Peace Beyond Fear project (2010-2015).
• Musée National des Arts Asiatiques-GuimetminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner museum for YEAD project activities, hosting youth workshops and cultural exchanges.
• LYCÉE ICS Taïba de Mboro (Sénégal)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchool partnership for Indigogènes project and Multi Histoire Sénégal exchanges.
• École du Breuil (Horticulture School, Paris)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Indigogènes project on indigo plants and ethnobotany.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubevimeo.com/user9420829
• Facebookfacebook.com/Anatives
• Instagraminstagram.com/anatives
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alter-natives75

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Alter Natives