Since 2001, ROOTS & ROUTES has developed from a local project in Rotterdam/Netherlands to a big European network, recently starting collaborations with cultural organisations on other continents.
In 2001, Rotterdam/Netherlands was the European Capital of Culture. In that context, ROOTS & ROUTES was founded as an initiative to give young artists from diverse backgrounds the chance to actively get involved in the Culture Capital activities.

Three years later the first international ROOTS & ROUTES edition was organized as part of the Dutch presidency of the European Union: Young artists from 7 European countries jointly performed at the big opening event “Europa op de Dam – Thinking Forward” on July 4th, 2004.

The shared goals and objectives of the participating organisations proved fruitful and led to many more transnational projects and involvement of new partners. In 2008, the collaboration was formalised with the establishment of the ROOTS & ROUTES International Association (RRIA).

The international network has since implemented 12 multiannual transnational projects funded by programmes such as ERASMUS+, Culture, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, Leonardo da Vinci and Grundtvig.

    Highlights

  • May 2001: First edition of ROOTS & ROUTES in Rotterdam (NL), European Capital of Culture in 2001.
  • July 2004: First international ROOTS & ROUTES project with partners from 7 countries, final performance at the “Europa op de Dam – Thinking Forward” concert.
  • May 2005: Start of a three year ROOTS & ROUTES project with partners from 8 countries, funded by the EU CULTURE programme.
  • July 2006: International ROOTS & ROUTES project in Cologne (DE) with final performance at the main stage of Summerjam festival.
  • October 2007: International ROOTS & ROUTES masterclass with De la Soul in Rotterdam (NL), leading to performance at Meet the Streets festival.
  • September 2008: International ROOTS & ROUTES Conference in Stockholm – founding of the ROOTS & ROUTES International Association.
  • Spring 2009: The first ROOTS & ROUTES Peer Coach Academies are running in 5 European countries.
  • May and August 2011: Final performances of the Art’n’Go project at Fabbrica Europa festival Florence (IT) and Sziget festival Budapest (HU).
  • April 2013: Final performance of the EUtropia project with young artists from 9 countries at Tivoli Utrecht (NL), in the context of the 300th anniversary of the Utrecht Peace Treaty.
  • September 2014: International ROOTS & ROUTES conference in Rotterdam (NL) finalising the transnational projects U-CARE – Urban Culture Against Racism in Europe and Steps Ahead – Professionalisation of Junior Coaches in Performing Arts and Media.
  • August 2015: The first edition of 24Hz festival is organised by ROOTS & ROUTES Cologne e. V. in Germany, in cooperation with international ROOTS & ROUTES partners.
  • January 2016: ROOTS & ROUTES partners RRNL (Netherlands) and Brouhaha International (UK) start international spoken word / poetry project The Next Generation Speaks with partners from Johannesburg (South Africa) and San Francisco (USA).
  • Summer 2017: The ROOTS & ROUTES Experience exchanges are happening in Cologne (DE) and Rotterdam (NL), connecting young artists from 10 countries.
  • October 2018: The transnational project Art4Act — Art in action for an inclusive society ends after 24 successful months, connecting 8 organisations from Europe and Africa.
  • Spring 2019: The Creative Europe funded ROOTS & ROUTES production Mind Ur Step! — Connecting Urban Dance and Theatres tours through France, Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany.
  • Summer 2020: The Generation Europe Mixed Reality Exchange is our first hybrid exchange, connecting groups from Italy, Greece and Germany online in times of Covid-19.
  • December 2021: In Kaunas (LT), the ROOTS & ROUTES International Association — previously based in Rotterdam — is re-founded as an association by German law, based in Cologne.
  • Summer 2022: ROOTS & ROUTES exchange projects for young artists are happening in Greece, Austria and Germany.
  • May 2023: The project OASES for Change — Organising Artistic Self-Empowerment Spaces comes to a successful end, sharing tools, guidelines and quality criteria for international arts-based youth work.
  • June 2024: The first transnational Each One, Teach One seminar for professional ROOTS & ROUTES coaches is held in Larissa (GR).
  • February 2025: The seminar Connecting arts-based Youthwork (#CABY25) in Budapest creates a match-making environment for 8 organisational RRIA members and 8 new organisations.