First Festival Programme Highlights
Big questions are on the table – and the Creative Bureaucracy Festival is the place to tackle them. How do we modernise public institutions without losing sight of democracy? What kind of state do we need to meet today’s challenges?
This June, we’ll explore answers together. With four stages, and four workshop spaces as well as our new meetup area, the 2025 programme dives into themes like state reform, inclusive innovation, cultural transformation, and smarter use of public funds. Over 150 speakers from over 30 countries will share bold ideas, practical tools, and inspiring experiences. Today we’re offering a first glimpse – a sneak peek at the people and topics shaping this year’s festival. As Festival Director Johanna Sieben puts it: “We’re seeing a global erosion of trust in democracy. To rebuild it, we need a bureaucracy that is humane, effective – and built to serve.” The full programme will be released very soon.
Until then, discover the first highlights and get ready for 5 June in Berlin.
🎯 IMPACT STAGE
Where Big Questions Meet Bold Ideas
How can we modernise the state without losing sight of democratic legitimacy? What does a capable, people-centred public administration look like in 2025? The Impact Stage addresses key questions of state reform, participatory democracy, and administrative innovation.
The programme highlights public sector innovation from around the globe – from new models of leadership and purpose in government to strategies for regaining trust in institutions.
Topics include the EU’s plans for strengthening public administration, digital transformation in federal systems, approaches to strengthening female leadership in the public sector and science governance, as well as how bureaucracy can become a democratic interface rather than a barrier.
On stage: Florian Hauser (European Commission), James Anderson (Government Innovation Lead, Bloomberg Philanthropies), Jon Alexander (author of CITIZENS: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us) and Katy Rubin (The People Act), Omezzine Khélifa (Mobdiun, Tunisia), Tamara Srzentić (former Minister of Public Administration, Montenegro), Martina Klement (State Secretary and CDO, Berlin), Dörte Dinger (State Secretary and Head of the Office of the Federal President, Germany), Alexandra Hänig (GPM Deutsche Gesellschaft für Projektmanagement e. V.), Simone Schwanitz (Max Planck Society), and Thomas de Maizière (former Federal Minister, Germany), alongside representatives from PD – Berater der öffentlichen Hand, the German Federal Ministry of Defence, the State Capability Enhancement Project of the Government Innovation Lab (Government of Meghalaya, India), and more.
The Impact Stage will be streamed on our website for everyone around the globe.
🌐 CONNECTION STAGE
Where Collaboration Powers Change
What connects school students in Brazil, climate innovators in Romania, and LGBTQIA+ public servants in Austria? The Connection Stage explores how collaboration, community, and creativity can drive systemic change across institutions, borders, and generations.
The programme looks at public infrastructure as a cultural project, rethinks fairness for future generations, and highlights local solutions to homelessness, housing, and digital transformation. Whether it’s reimagining citizen engagement, inclusive administration, or the future of cultural institutions – this stage celebrates the power of unlikely alliances and shared purpose.
On stage: Tatiana Fernández (Catalan Government), Maria Vitória Lima (Controladoria-Geral de Belo Horizonte, Brazil), Naresh Narasimhan, Amritha Ganapathy & Bhagyashri Kulkarni (Mod Foundation, India), the UrbanizeHub (Romania), Goethe-Institut, the German Federal Chancellery, European Commission, PD – Berater der öffentlichen Hand, byte – Bavarian Agency for Digital Transformation, and the German Federal Ministry for Housing, Urban Development and Building. Also joining are speakers from the City of Stuttgart, the DigitalService des Bundes, and projects such as FLEX:Unit Kiel, BunterBund, Start-up BW Local, Urban Stack, and more.
⚙️ TRANSFORMATION STAGE
Modern Tools for Modern States
How can governments navigate complexity, rethink their practices, and lead meaningful transformation? The Transformation Stage is where we explore the tools, mindsets, and mechanisms that help the public sector respond to today’s demands – from financial reform and tech innovation to cultural change and data-driven decisions.
The programme spans community as a capability in government, inclusive innovation, and smarter public investment. Sessions delve into data labs and cloud migration in Germany, digital education in Indonesia, participatory foresight like the Decision Theatre, and how states can regulate tech while upgrading their own services. We also explore invisible barriers faced by people with non-visible disabilities and new thinking around diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
On stage: Erdem Ovacik (Impact Market), Chisom Udeze (Diversify, Norway), Tobias Temmen (wait, what., Switzerland), Annette Cmela from Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, Cori Zarek, Cassandra Madison, Dominic Campbell & Mary Beth Goodman from Apolitical, representatives from INA Digital EDU (Indonesia), Decision Theatre, and the Goethe-Institut. Also joining are speakers from PD – Berater der öffentlichen Hand, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V., German federal ministries’ data labs, and more.
🎨 IMAGINATION STAGE
New Futures in the Making
How can we rethink public institutions beyond incremental change? The Imagination Stage offers space for bold ideas and shared reflection in a participatory fishbowl format – inviting curiosity, dialogue, and creative disruption.
From reshaping the role of culture in urban transformation to navigating complexity and institutional chaos, the stage creates space for fresh perspectives.
Discussions include rethinking public institutions with international innovation leaders, exploring administrative agility, and highlighting the changing expectations of government action. Whether tackling structural inertia or climate governance, the fishbowl conversations promise direct, open exchange at eye level.
On stage: Charles Landry (Festival President, Urbanist & Author), Edyta Ruta, Jonathan Roth, Antonia Blau & Nico Degenkolb from the Goethe-Institut, Christian Bason, Isabella Gady (TIAL), Caio Werneck (Transition Collective), Hermann Hill (University of Speyer), Florian Andresen (German Federal Ministry of Defence), as well as representatives from Demos Helsinki, the German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt), the German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the ‘Handlungsfähiger Staat’ initiative, aiming to enhance public sector effectiveness in Germany, and more.
🗯️ FORUMS, ACADEMY & MEETUPS
Spaces for Deep Dives and New Connections
Beyond the main stages, the festival offers four dedicated Forums, including our Academy, and a new Meetup area – each designed to foster deeper exchange, hands-on learning, and cross-sector collaboration on the most pressing questions in governance today.
- The Forum Digital Transformation explores how governments can use digital tools and data more effectively – from improving planning and permitting processes to managing skilled migration, promoting inter-federal data use, and tackling disinformation. Curated by PD – Berater der öffentlichen Hand.
- The Forum Navigating Change addresses institutional adaptation to social and technological shifts – from transforming workplace culture to reshaping property strategies and strengthening the rule of law in global contexts. With contributions from the Goethe-Institut, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V., the Berlin Senate Chancellery, the Institute for Federal Real Estate (BImA), and more.
- The Forum Rethinking Governance looks at the practical side of modern governance – including innovation labs, data-powered policymaking, and new citizen engagement tools. With partners like the BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt, GIZ, the German Chancellery, the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, and more.
- The Academy focuses on learning for systems change, public sector capabilities, and bureaucratic activism in service of the common good. Hosted by Politics for Tomorrow.
- The new Meetup area invites informal, drop-in conversations around shared interests. Topics include youth in public service, diversity, mobility, and policy innovation, with contributions from the European Commission, Decision Theatre, the youth organisation of the German Civil Service Federation (dbb Jugend), and others.
