What The Democracy & Culture Foundation does

The Democracy & Culture Foundation is a UK-registered nonprofit foundation (The Democracy and Culture Foundation Limited, registered number 11850248) that convenes political, business, civic, and cultural leaders alongside citizens and youth activists to address democratic disaffection and improve democratic processes. Founded in 2019 and headquartered in London at 10 Charles Clowes Walk, Nine Elms, the foundation operates with approximately 20 employees and runs a portfolio of programs and events rather than a technology platform. Its core offerings include two flagship annual events — the Athens Democracy Forum (held in Athens since the foundation's launch) and Art for Tomorrow (held in different host cities since 2015, with the 2025 edition held in Milan at the Triennale) — alongside a suite of projects including the Kofi Annan NextGen Democracy Prize, co-convened with the Kofi Annan Foundation, Teens for Democracy, Building Blocks for Democracy, ORBIS, Digital Toolkit for Democracy, and a Climate Initiative. The foundation delivers programs under a "Think-Talk-Do" framework targeting four thematic areas: Social Justice, Digital Technologies, Sustainability, and Culture. Supporting infrastructure consists of a curated online Library of Democratic Content containing over 1,065 articles, reports, videos, and papers organized across topics including Liberal Democracy (507 resources), Authoritarianism (204), Tools of Democracy (353), Media and Technology (167), and Economy (120). The foundation does not sell products or services; participation in events and programs is open to leaders, experts, citizens, and youth activists.

The foundation's revenue model is diversified across four streams: individual philanthropic contributions, grants from other foundations, corporate sponsorships from companies implementing CSR-aligned policies (named partners include Berggruen Institute, Facebook, TEMES, AP Globale, McKinsey & Co, Mishcon de Reya, and Microsoft), and EU subsidies for democratic and civic engagement programs. It works with a network of strategic partners spanning civil society, media, government, and corporate sectors — including core partners such as the Berggruen Institute, New York Times, European University Institute, City of Athens, and Bertelsmann Stiftung — to amplify reach and deliver programming. No commercial pricing model applies. The foundation holds no patents, has no app offerings, and provides no APIs; its digital surface is limited to its website, LinkedIn, and YouTube channels. Leadership consists of Achilles Tsaltas as President. Geographic operations span Europe (UK headquarters, Greece as flagship event host) and North America (via the New York Times partnership and US-based partners).

Name

The Democracy & Culture Foundation

Legal name

The Democracy and Culture Foundation Limited

Website

https://democracyculturefoundation.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Democracy & Culture Foundation is a UK-registered nonprofit that convenes political, civic, business, and cultural leaders alongside citizens and youth activists through flagship events (Athens Democracy Forum, Art for Tomorrow) and programs focused on democratic engagement, youth participation, and cultural policy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civic Engagement and Democracy Programs

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (81331), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

akta.pro primary industry

Democracy, Voting Rights & Civic Participation Advocacy (BPAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Civic Education & Community Engagement (Voting, Local Government) (EDAAAFAC), Civil Society Strengthening & Civic Space (BPADAGAD), Digital Inclusion & Civic Tech (Connectivity, GovTech for Social Good) (BPAGALAK), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Democracy advocacy programs
• Civic engagement initiatives
• Policy dialogue forums
• Cultural democracy projects
• Democratic education programs

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic Contributions: Individual philanthropy and donations from individuals who support democratic engagement and civic causes.
2. Foundation Grants: Grants from other foundations that align with the foundation's principles and work on democracy and culture.
3. Corporate Sponsorships: Sponsorships from companies implementing CSR policies aligned with the foundation's principles. Current partners include Berggruen Institute, Facebook, TEMES, AP Globale, McKinsey & Co, Mishcon de Reya, and Microsoft.
4. EU Subsidies: Funding from European Union subsidies for democratic and civic engagement programmes.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Democracy & Culture Foundation is a UK-registered nonprofit that convenes leaders, experts, citizens and young people through flagship annual forums (Athens Democracy Forum, Art for Tomorrow) and a portfolio of project initiatives, awards and educational programmes. It offers a curated online Library of Democratic Content containing over 1,065 articles, reports, videos and papers, and pursues a "Think-Talk-Do" impact chain focused on four pillars: Social Justice, Digital Technologies, Sustainability, and Culture.

Product overview

The Democracy & Culture Foundation operates a portfolio of programs and events rather than a traditional technology product. Its core offerings include two flagship annual events—Athens Democracy Forum and Art for Tomorrow—alongside multiple project initiatives such as the Kofi Annan NextGen Democracy Prize, Teens for Democracy, Building Blocks for Democracy, and a Library of Democratic Content containing over 1,065 curated resources. The foundation's programmatic approach follows a 'Think-Talk-Do' impact chain to empower society through citizen engagement and better governance, focusing on four programmatic areas: Social Justice, Digital Technologies, Sustainability, and Culture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Athens Democracy Forum: Annual forum bringing together democracy and governance experts, held in Athens
• Art for Tomorrow
• Kofi Annan NextGen Democracy Prize
• Politicians' Hall of Fame
• Teens for Democracy
• Creativity for Social Change Award
• ORBIS
• Caucus of Parliamentarians
• TED Project
• Building Blocks for Democracy
• Digital Toolkit for Democracy
• Climate

Products and services

• Athens Democracy Forum Annual international forum convened in Athens to discuss democracy challenges, bringing together political, business, civic and cultural leaders, with sessions on rethinking key issues, regional case studies and new tools for democracy.
• Art for Tomorrow Annual event held in different host cities since 2015 that explores how culture serves as a catalyst for social and economic development alongside democratic values, examining the interplay of politics and culture, technology, climate crisis and the arts' social impact.
• Kofi Annan NextGen Democracy Prize Annual prize co-convened with the Kofi Annan Foundation recognizing young leaders who advance democratic values; the 2025 prize was awarded to Julián Sastoque.
• Teens for Democracy Youth engagement initiative exploring teenagers' perspectives on democracy and digital policy through workshops and deliberation processes with teenagers from various fields, including a March 14, 2026 workshop on teens and social media.
• Building Blocks for Democracy Multi-module educational initiative covering topics including The Power of Voting, The Power of People, The Power of Parties (Money & Influence), and The Power of Information.
• ORBIS Project focused on democratic engagement and innovation.
• Digital Toolkit for Democracy Digital resources and tools supporting democratic processes and citizen engagement.
• Climate Initiative Program addressing climate change within the context of democracy and sustainable governance.
• Library of Democratic Content Curated online library containing over 1,065 articles, reports, videos and papers on democracy and culture organized by topics including Liberal Democracy (507), Authoritarianism (204), Tools of Democracy (353), Media and Technology (167), Economy (120), and Multilateralism.
• Creativity for Social Change Award Award recognizing creative approaches to social and democratic change.
• Politicians' Hall of Fame Initiative recognizing and documenting political leaders making contributions to democracy.
• Caucus of Parliamentarians Network connecting parliamentarians to advance democratic processes and cooperation.
• Democracy & Culture Foundation Day Pre-Plenary Day held during the Athens Democracy Forum featuring talks, presentations and conversations showcasing foundation work.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, regional and minor.

• Berggruen InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partner in the foundation's work on democracy and governance. The Berggruen Institute works on institutional design and political transformation.
• Kofi Annan FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-conveners of the Kofi Annan NextGen Democracy Prize, awarded to emerging leaders advancing democratic values. The prize recognizes young changemakers working to renew democracy.
• New York TimescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partner providing editorial collaboration and audience reach for discussions on democracy and culture topics.
• City of AthensregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost partner for the Athens Democracy Forum, providing local support and venue for the annual flagship event.
• Better Politics FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject partner supporting political engagement and democratic reform initiatives.
• Moleskine FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject partner focused on creativity and cultural engagement for social change.
• Bertelsmann StiftungcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject partner supporting research and initiatives on democracy, governance, and social cohesion.
• European University InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner providing research expertise and thought leadership on European democracy and governance.
• TEMESregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerGreek development company supporting cultural and democratic initiatives in the region.
• AP GlobaleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner supporting global initiatives on democracy and culture.
• Facebook (Meta)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology and strategic partner engaging on topics of digital democracy, platform governance, and civic technology.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• International IDEA: Intergovernmental organization supporting democratic institutions and electoral processes worldwide. Comparable focus on democratic processes, citizen participation, and constitution-building that mirrors DCF's Tools of Democracy programming.
• Berggruen Institute: Think tank focused on institutional design and political transformation. The Democracy & Culture Foundation's core strategic partner with near-overlapping mission around governance reform and citizen engagement.
• Kofi Annan Foundation: Foundation advancing democracy, peace, and sustainable development. Co-convener with DCF on the NextGen Democracy Prize; highly comparable mission and target audience of emerging leaders.
• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: Global think tank with democracy and governance programmes. Comparable convening power and policy-research orientation, though at substantially larger scale with a broader international-affairs remit.
• National Endowment for Democracy (NED): US-based private foundation that funds democracy-promotion programmes globally. Highly comparable mission of strengthening democratic institutions and civil society, though operating at much greater scale with a US government-funded grantmaking model.

Broad incumbents

• Open Society Foundations: Largest private foundation focused on democratic governance, human rights, and civil society globally. Mission-aligned but operates at vastly greater scale with multi-billion-dollar grantmaking capacity.
• Chatham House (Royal Institute of International Affairs): Established London-based international affairs institute. Overlaps with DCF's governance and citizen-engagement work, but operates across a much broader foreign-policy portfolio rather than focusing specifically on democracy and culture.

Regional players

• European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR): Pan-European think tank on foreign policy and European governance. Comparable European policy-convening function and citizen-engagement orientation, though focused on foreign-policy rather than culture-democracy intersection.

Others

• European University Institute: Academic institution providing research expertise on European democracy and governance. DCF's core academic partner; comparable intellectual content-generation in the democracy space but operating as an academic rather than advocacy entity.

Emerging players

• Moonshot CVE: Civic-tech company using data and digital tools to counter violent extremism and disinformation. Comparable focus on digital democracy and platform governance themes that intersect with DCF's Digital Toolkit for Democracy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC384SgW7iqUoEVwqeDVFkxw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/democracy-culture-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 The Democracy & Culture Foundation