Mission, vision and strategic goals.
Cicada Foundation For Art & Education (VO/0999) works so that creativity and learning are treated as public goods in Malta — available to everyone, in every locality, at every stage of life.
Art and education as instruments of social development
Our mission is to use art and education as practical tools for social development, cultural enrichment and lifelong learning across Malta. We deliver structured creative programmes that build technical skill and critical confidence; we open those programmes to people who are ordinarily excluded from cultural life by cost, distance, disability or circumstance; and we support the artists, tutors and volunteers who make that work possible.
We regard creative education as civic infrastructure. A community that can make, exhibit and discuss its own work is better equipped to understand itself, to include newcomers and to pass on what it values. Every workshop, exhibition and mentorship placement we organise is measured against that standard: does it leave participants and their community with more capacity than before?
“A vibrant, culturally rich Maltese society in which art and education are accessible to everyone — inspiring creativity, mutual understanding and pride in a shared heritage.”
What we are working towards
Expand community art programmes
Increase the number of localities hosting regular workshops, so that no resident of Malta or Gozo is more than a short journey from an open studio session. Each new location is launched with a resident tutor, a materials fund and a two-year commitment.
Partner with educational institutions
Formalise collaborations with schools, colleges and training centres to embed creative practice in the curriculum, provide continuing professional development for teachers and open our facilities to student projects.
Promote cultural diversity
Design programming with and for Malta's resident communities of many nationalities, offering multilingual facilitation and exhibitions that place Maltese heritage in conversation with the cultures now part of island life.
Strengthen support for emerging artists
Grow the mentorship and scholarship funds, add studio residencies and build a network of professional advisers so that talent is not lost to a lack of means, contacts or confidence.
Safeguard traditional craft knowledge
Record the techniques of senior craftspeople through documented masterclasses and an accessible archive, ensuring skills survive the generation that holds them.
Maintain exemplary governance
Keep reporting, safeguarding and financial controls at a standard that partners, funders and the public can verify, consistent with our obligations as a registered voluntary organization.
How we measure progress
Participation
Attendance, retention and the proportion of participants reached through fee waivers or partner referrals.
Capability
Skills gained, works completed and exhibited, and progression into further study or professional practice.
Stewardship
Share of expenditure reaching programme delivery, timeliness of statutory reporting and partner feedback.