Main beneficiaries
The project addressed citizens and readers in Marseille and Aix-en-Provence, university students, researchers, writers, translators, journalists, cultural partners and schools.
Participants engaged through free public events, author dialogues, round tables, performances, storytelling evenings, writing and translation workshops and student-led exchanges.
The programme brought together 16 international writers and intellectuals, 11 faculty researchers and at least 10 core student organisers, while the wider programme reached approximately 900 attendances over the three days.
Students, doctoral and postdoctoral volunteers were actively involved throughout the festival and contributed to interviews, translation, photography, video production, press activities, reception and logistics.
The project was supported by a broad partnership involving the Association Effets Réels, CIVIS Open Lab, the Italian Cultural Institute in Marseille, the City of Aix-en-Provence and the Aix Biennial 2026, Institut Ramon Llull, SOFIA, the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, EJCAM – Aix-Marseille School of Journalism and Communication, AMU research units CAER, CIELAM and TELEMMe, UFR ALLSH / SFR Maison de la Recherche, ATLAS and Dominique Vittoz, and Les Chants du Monde bookshop.
Social Impact
Effets Réels created a visible meeting place between the university and local communities, bringing academic knowledge, literary creation and civic debate into shared public spaces.
Free access helped reduce economic barriers to participation, while the programme opened public discussion around truth, memory, war, migration, family histories, gender, mental health and democratic responsibility.
Participatory formats based on writing, comics, translation and storytelling enabled citizens to actively produce and share material rather than participate only as spectators.
CIVIS/Open Lab support gave the initiative a strong European and international dimension. It strengthened cooperation with partners in Madrid, Rome and Kyiv-Mohyla Academy and contributed to durable connections among writers, researchers, translators, publishers, cultural institutions, bookshops and local audiences.
The project also generated opportunities for continued collaboration, including future workshops, school outreach, translation projects and partnerships with international festivals.
