Upper Austria's folk culture award: Honoring for creative community projects

Upper Austria's folk culture award: Honoring for creative community projects

The folk culture awards of the state of Upper Austria were awarded in a festive ceremony in the Linzer Landhaus on Friday evening. These awards, which are given every two years, honor outstanding initiatives and projects that enrich the diverse folk-cultural life of the region. The aim is to make voluntary commitment visible and to honor popular culture. A main prize of 7,400 euros and four sponsorship prizes of 3,700 euros each were awarded.

The main prize, the Upper Austria. Folk Culture Prize, received by the “First IMPRO Festival Linz” project from the “Humor Prevention” association. In 2024, this event brought together over 80 improvisational theater enthusiasts from 17 amateur theater groups in Upper Austria and the surrounding area. According to an independent jury of experts, the festival not only reflected the creative energy of the association, but also remarkably promoted exchange and collaboration within the amateur theater community.

Diverse award winners

This year, the four sponsorship awards went to various initiatives that were also committed to culture. The Danube Swabians' country team was honored for their project “Danube Swabian walks”, which recalls the eventful history of the Danube Swabians. The Laufen Gmunden-Engelhof factory band also received a sponsorship award for a youth project. The rural youth Tarsdorf received further awards for their project “Barrierefrei Gartln”, which promotes accessibility in gardens, as well as the Rohrbach district home association for its important publications on local local history.

The evening was musically accompanied by a wind quartet from the Laufen Gmunden-Engelhof company band. The Governor of Upper Austria, Thomas Stelzer, emphasized the importance of folk culture for the country and emphasized that such awards are crucial in order to bring high-quality and unifying culture to the fore. “Folk culture is very important in Upper Austria and shapes our country,” said Stelzer, underlining the relevance of the award-winning projects for the region.

At a time when community values ​​and cultural ties are becoming increasingly important, these awards set an example for the valuable work that many volunteers do in the field of folk culture. The award ceremony shows how important it is to reward these efforts and make it accessible to the public. A deeper insight into the excellent projects and their backgrounds can be found here at ooe.orf.at.