Helsingborg is located in the north-western corner of Skåne region and is 346 km² in size. It contains 15 urban areas, of which the city of Helsingborg is the largest with over 101,000 inhabitants. Approximately one fourth of the population are foreign-born.

City is quite a large city by Swedish standards. There is ongoing extensive work to reduce disparities and conflicts within the city. The goals during the BSR Cultural Pearls title year are to increase residents’ participation and co-creation, particularly among children and young people, and try to reduce involuntary loneliness among children, young people, and the elderly. By doing this, city wants to contribute to increasing residents’ sense of security and safety.

The new forms of co-creation and influence will be piloted, focusing on children, young people, and the elderly. By incorporating the stories and experiences of children, youth, and seniors in how we shape and develop the city, we aim to build a sense of community and pride that strengthens Helsingborg’s resilience against social gaps and conflicts. We also believe that knowledge of and trust in the city’s administrations and its development efforts will be strengthened by co-creative projects and processes. This plan includes projects that provide children and youth with tools to articulate and shape their stories, influence the city’s supply of culture and other services, and strengthen their self-esteem. There are also projects where elderlies can share their life stories and experiences while creating together with others in new communities.

The role of culture is to provide new knowledge and foster new communities that empower both individuals and the local society in enjoyable and reflective formats for artistic and cultural creation.

The short-term outcome of the projects is an increased supply of co-created culture, while the medium-term outcome will be that more and better methods for co-creation through culture will be integrated into everyday development work.

It is crucial for Helsingborg to build cohesion and trust to counteract fragmentation and conflicts between different groups. It is believed that co-created art and culture can contribute significantly to this.

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Visit: www.helsingborg.se

Activities & Events

Engaging the Elders: Living History Project Strengthens Roots and Community

During the BSR Cultural Pearls 2025 title year the city of Helsingborg is about to pilot new forms of co-creation, focusing on children, young people, and the elderly. By incorporating the stories and experiences of local inhabitants in how they see their city, the aim is to build a sense of community and pride that strengthens Helsingborg’s resilience against social gaps and conflicts.

One of these initiatives called History Comes Alive is organized by the Helsingborg Museum. They are testing a completely new format for the theatre walks at the open-air museum, co-creating the content together with seniors and actively involving them in the performances. History Comes Alive is a collaboration with them in the script work, allowing to contribute memories and diary entries to enrich the stories and give them authenticity.