Živa award

The Živa Award honors excellence in Slavic museums, cultural and natural heritage sites, and efforts to preserve Slavic heritage worldwide. It recognizes, encourages, and rewards innovative projects, practices, and experiments within the museum sector, considering the unique cultural and geographical context of Slavic nations in Europe. The award highlights the distinctiveness and shared values of the Slavic world—its stories, traditions, and heritage—while acknowledging both its common roots and diverse historical challenges.

The number of Slavic museums and cultural and natural monuments making an impact on local and national levels is staggering—and continues to grow each day. While this expansion is admirable, it is equally important that these experiences are shared, recognized, and appreciated.

The Živa Prize was established to promote the protection, conservation, education, and interpretation of museum collections and cultural and natural heritage. It serves as a platform for exchange and promotion across Slavic countries and the broader European area, showcasing creativity, innovation, accessibility, and social impact. By celebrating institutions that push the boundaries of museology, the Živa Prize contributes to the ongoing evolution of museum practices and cultural heritage engagement.

The member countries of the Forum of Slavic Cultures appoint judges from each participating nation. Additionally, the European Academy of Museums contributes three to four experts from its own network. In total, the judging panel comprises 13 to 14 members, representing diverse professional backgrounds, including museum directors, cultural management consultants, curators, public relations specialists, and marketing experts in the museum sector.

  • Ekaterina Djoumalieva (Bolgaria) – Director of the Cultural Heritage, Museums and Visual Arts Directorate at Ministry of Culture of Bulgaria
  • Pavel Douša (zech Republic) – Deputy Director General of the National Agriculture Museum Prague
  • Olha Honchar (Ukraine) – Director of the Territory of Terror Memorial Museum of Totalitarian Regimes in Lviv
  • Dirk Houtgraaf (Netherlands) – Strategic Marketing Advisor at the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, Ministry of Education, Culture and Science
  • Neda Knežević (Serbia) – Director of the Museum of Yugoslavia
  • Lidija Nikočević (Croatia) – Senior Curator at the Ethnographic Museum of Istria
  • Andreja Rihter (Slovenia) – Director of the Forum of Slavic Cultures
  • Dobrila Vlahović (Montenegro) – Director General of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Ministry of Culture and Media of Montenegro
  • Eleftheria Vlachou (Greece) – Deputy Director and Head of Projects, Development, and Networking at the Cultural Foundation of the National Bank
  • Branislav Panis (Slovak Republic) – Curator at the Slovak National Museum, Museum of History at Bratislava Castle
  • Karolina Zdravič Dravič (Slovenia) – Museum Councillor
  • Sarita Vujković (Bosnia and Hercegovina) – Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art of the Republic of Srpska
  • Robert Zydel (Poland) – Director of the E. Wedel Chocolate Factory
  • Rene Capovin (Italy) – Director of the Museum of Industry and Labour of Brescia
  • Massimo Negri (Italy) – Director of the European Museum Academy (EMA)
  • Maja Chankulovska Mihajlovska (North Macedonia) – Senior Curator at National Institution National Gallery Skopje

The member countries of the Forum of Slavic Cultures appoint judges from each participating nation. Additionally, the European Academy of Museums contributes three to four experts from its own network. In total, the judging panel comprises 13 to 14 members, representing diverse professional backgrounds, including museum directors, cultural management consultants, curators, public relations specialists, and marketing experts in the museum sector.

Ekaterina Djoumalieva, Bulgaria
Director of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Museums, and Visual Arts, Ministry of Culture of Bulgaria

Dr. Pavel Douša, Czech Republic
Deputy Director General, National Agriculture Museum, Prague

Olha Honchar, Ukraine
Director, Memorial Museum of Totalitarian Regimes “Territory of Terror”

Dirk Houtgraaf, Netherlands
Strategic Marketing Consultant, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (Ministry of Education, Culture and Science)

Neda Knežević, MA,  Serbia
Director, Museum of Yugoslavia, Belgrade

Dr. Lidija Nikočević, Croatia
Senior curator

Gordan Nikolov, MSc, North Macedonia
Curator advisor, Museum of the Republic of North Macedonia

Dr. Andreja Rihter,  Slovenia
Director, Forum of Slavic Cultures

Dobrila Vlahović, MSc, Montenegro
Director-General of the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, Ministry of Culture and Media of Montenegro

Elia Vlachou, DEA, Greece
Deputy Director, Head of Projects, Development & Networking Cultural Foundation of the National Bank

Branislav Panis, Slovak Republic
Museum Curator
The Slovak National Museum, Museum of History at Bratislava Castle

Karolina Nina Zdravič, MA, Slovenia
Museum Councilor

Dr. Sarita Vujković, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Director, Museum of Contemporary Art of the Republic of Srpska

Robert Zydel, Poland
Director of Chocolate Factory E. Wedel

Applications are open to candidates from the following countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine. Participation is free of charge. There are no geographical restrictions for the Award for Excellence in the Preservation of Slavic Cultural Heritage. Applications are free of charge.

Applications for Best Slavic Museum are welcome from all types and sizes of museums: history, contemporary history, war memorials and museums, natural history, technology, art museums and galleries, industrial museums, science, technology and interpretation centres, ethnographic, architecture, design, literature, music, university and other types. The museums may be local, regional, national, federal, municipal, community, special or private, old or recently established.

Applications for Best Slavic Heritage Site are accepted from a variety of heritage sites: historicalbuildings and structures, ensembles of monuments, architectural works, archaeological sites, cultural and natural museum reserves and sites, revitalised, reconstructed industrial buildings and areas used for museum and cultural purposes, combined works of man and nature such as gardens and parks – heritage sites of exceptional historical, artistic, scientific, ethnological and anthropological value.

The Živa Award for the Best in Preserving Slavic Heritage Worldwide is open to applications from: various Slavic museums or memorial houses or spaces abroad, in the diaspora and in the cross-border regions of the countries of the FSK circle; Slavic societies and national houses abroad, other institutions and community associations throughout the world, illustrating the sharing of collective memory and demonstrating various aspects of national, ethnic cultural identity through events and activities, Slavic artefacts, traditions, publications, and others, pointing to the specific preservation facts of Slavic cultural identity and heritage abroad and the extent of links with their countries of origin.

The selection procedure starts with the publication of an international call for proposals. Applications and promotion are carried out with the assistance of an international jury. The first half of the year is devoted to evaluating applications and deciding on prizes. After the submission of complete applications, the judges visit the participating museums, and then the judges meet to review the reports, exchange their expert evaluations and decide on the winners of the prizes and special mentions. This is followed by the organisation of the award ceremony and the accompanying events, which eventually evolved into a professional meeting offering an opportunity to exchange experiences. The Živa Awards cycle ends in September with the award ceremony and a three-day meeting of experts.

This unique sculpture was created by Ljubica Ratkajec Kočica, a Slovenian visual artist and glass and ceramic designer from Rogaška Slatina. Her works have been successfully exhibited in solo and group exhibitions and have won numerous national and international awards. A significant part of her creative work is devoted to the female form, which she illustrates with a stylised head and a simple silhouette, ingeniously complemented by individual symbols and artistic elements.

Call is closed

Živa award 2025

Deadline: 31. 03. 2025

The Forum of Slavic Cultures (FSK) is pleased to announce the opening of applications for the Živa Awards 2025, a prestigious recognition...

Živa - Best Heritage Sites
Bled Castle
2024
Bled / Slovenia

Jury justification

This site of great cultural and natural importance is a unique, geographically and historically incomparable landmark in the country – a site of great heritage value and natural beauty, with historic structures, mountains, a lake and an island, bearing witness to its past and present. One of the most outstanding...

Živa - Best Heritage Sites
Bled Castle
2024
Bled / Slovenia

Jury justification

This site of great cultural and natural importance is a unique, geographically and historically incomparable landmark in the country – a site of great heritage value and natural beauty, with historic structures, mountains, a lake and an island, bearing witness to its past and present. One of the most outstanding...

Živa – Best Slavic Museum
Rousse Regional Museum of History
2024
Rousse / Bulgaria

Jury justification

This dynamic and multi-faceted institution does an outstanding work in preserving, studying and promoting the region’s rich cultural and natural heritage. Located on the borderline, at the crossroads of civilizations through the ages, this vibrant organisation takes up the challenge of highlighting the unique identity of each one of the...

Živa – Best Slavic Museum
Rousse Regional Museum of History
2024
Rousse / Bulgaria

Jury justification

This dynamic and multi-faceted institution does an outstanding work in preserving, studying and promoting the region’s rich cultural and natural heritage. Located on the borderline, at the crossroads of civilizations through the ages, this vibrant organisation takes up the challenge of highlighting the unique identity of each one of the...

For Creativity
2024

Publications

Ziva 2024
Ziva 2022
Ziva 2020
Ziva 2019
Ziva 2018
Ziva 2017
Ziva 2016
Ziva 2015
Ziva 2014

More than just an award, the Živa Award serves as a vital transnational cultural platform, fostering dialogue, communication, and networking among museum professionals. It promotes the exchange of ideas and experiences, integrates public engagement in museum activities, and encourages innovation, creativity, cooperation, and inclusion within the cultural sector.