Allianz Foundation Fellows

Empower people.

In its Fellowship Programme, the Allianz Foundation supports inspiring pioneers addressing the urgent challenges of our time in an ingenious and solution-oriented manner.

The programme is aimed at people looking beyond the beaten path in the pursuit of new approaches to overcoming injustices. Whether in the context of their artistic work, their social engagement in civil society, their scholarly work – or at the intersection of these areas.

The Allianz Foundation usually funds the Fellows for a period of ten months. During their fellowship, they develop works of art, event formats, platforms, prototypes, new narratives and much more. The Fellows form a network across Europe that remains strong and grows beyond the support of individuals. Creative synergies emerge from the collaboration with other Allianz Foundation initiatives – like the Allianz Foundation Hubs.

The Allianz Foundation supports the Fellows in their efforts against nationalism and discrimination, for equal opportunities, open societies and an environment worth living in.

Inspiring Risktakers: Our current Fellows

Claudia Zini

Photo: Umut Baltaci

“Art can help us heal.”

Claudia Zini curates safe spaces where people come together to learn from artists who survived war and genocide, and explore how art can help us process violence and trauma. She lives and works in Sarajevo (BiH) where in 2018 she founded Kuma International, a non-profit research and educational center dedicated to visual arts from post-conflict societies.

In 2019, Claudia was one of the curators of the Pavilion of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Venice Biennale. In 2025, she was awarded the Order of the Star of Italy for her commitment to cultural diplomacy and socially engaged practice. She holds a PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art (London).

Elena Tacu

“In togetherness we grieve the forest, in togetherness we grow the hope.”

Elena Tacu supports local activists in processing climate grief and finding shared hope by creating a collective book of stories and art. Born and raised in rural Moldova, she has cared about nature since childhood. In 2017, she co-launched a plastic recycling initiative, entering environmental activism. Recognising education as key to social change, Elena became a non-formal education facilitator and trainer in Moldova and abroad.

Over eight years at the NGO EcoVisio, she specialised in community support, fostering horizontal learning and collective sense‑making. As an intersectional activist, she also engages in animal rights, feminist, queer and climate movements, having been part of Fridays for Future Moldova.

Hajnalka Somogyi

Photo: The Orbital Strangers Project

“Art persists regardless. Building infrastructure is how we support its makers, protect its publics, and expand its social reach.”

Hajnalka Somogyi is a contemporary art curator and manager best known as the founder, leader, and co‑curator of OFF‑Biennale Budapest, a major grassroots international art project she has directed since 2014. She is also a professor at the Art and Design Theory Institute of Budapest Metropolitan University. Somogyi has curated widely in Hungary and abroad, including serving as guest curator of the Tropical Lab programme at LaSalle College of the Arts in Singapore in 2023 and 2024.

Her previous roles include editor of artmagazin.hu, curator at Ludwig Museum (Museum of Contemporary Art, Budapest) and between 2001 and 2006 at Trafo, House of Contemporary Arts, Budapest. She co-founded the independent art initiatives Dinamo and Impex, both in Budapest.

Luka Knežević Strika

“If the systems forget us, we remember each other.”

Luka Knežević Strika works with artists and local communities to protect overlooked spaces and stories and to connect people across borders so they can build together rather than remain divided. He is a photographer, visual artist and cultural worker involved in numerous self-organised initiatives, including art collectives, artist‑run spaces, residencies and awards such as Belgrade Raw, Simply Put, Probate Gallery, Commendation and Multimadeira.

He has taught and facilitated projects supporting migrants and young people, curated the Artget Gallery programme in 2013, and exhibited widely across Europe. Luka serves on the boards of Kooperativa and Fundaction and previously led Serbia’s Independent Cultural Scene Association.

Photo: Sanja Radulovic

Olha Boiko

Photo: Ecodiya

“Develop civil society in your country like your life depends on it.”

Olha Boiko is a facilitator, community‑building consultant, and organizational development expert with a decade of experience strengthening civil society in Ukraine and the region. She led the Climate Action Network Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia from 2019 to 2025 and rejoined its Board in 2026. Holding an MA in NGO Management, she is skilled in network building, fundraising, people management, and facilitating multicultural dialogue.

Olha co‑authored the community‑building guide Hurtuimos’ (“Let’s Get Together”) and advises leaders on values‑based strategy and group dynamics. She also conducts organizational capacity assessments for the Philanthropy in Ukraine platform and serves on the Dalan Fund’s Resource Distribution Committee.

Pierluigi Bizzini

“Connecting local and global, and global with local.”

The journalism Pierluigi Bizzini practices is rooted in helping hands and connecting eyes, collaboratively generating stories that can change the world. The independent journalist based in Sicily is a member of the FADA Collective. His work focuses on migration, extractivism and environmental issues across Sicily and the Mediterranean.

His reporting has appeared in Die Zeit, Al Jazeera, IrpiMedia and EUobserver, and he was nominated for the European Press Prize in 2024. He also works as a curator at The Syllabus and is committed to collaborative, participatory journalism that supports disadvantaged rural communities in Southern Italy.

Taras Gembik

Photo: Yulia Krivich

“Everyone’s personal story is an essential part of the story we all share. If we don’t listen to those who speak most quietly, we can never understand the whole.”

Taras Gembik uses art and poetry to help people connect, support each other, and feel like they belong. Originally from Kamin-Kashyrskyi, Ukraine, and now based in Warsaw, the poet, curator and activist works across art, education and community-building, creating platforms for migrants, refugees and people experiencing social exclusion.

He co-founded the BLYZKIST collective and the GALAS initiative, and co-runs the AntiCrisis Club supporting people affected by homelessness through cultural participation. Taras Gembik collaborates widely with cultural and social institutions, focusing on solidarity and relational practices. He curates exhibitions and public programmes at Zachęta, National Gallery of Art in Warsaw, and studies applied sociology. His first poetry collection Nieskończone teraz (The Infinite Now), was published by HelaPress, in 2025.

Tarik Belkadi

“As Joseph Ki-Zerbo put it: ‘If we give up, we are dead.’”

Tarik Belkadi’s action research focuses on cooperatives in France, Spain and Italy. His work brings immigrants together to develop collective strategies for mutual support and to build material autonomy and political power in response to racism and ongoing crises.

As a co‑founder of the A4 association, he has been involved for many years in projects that promote political autonomy, understood as enabling people affected by systemic inequalities to participate directly in decisions that shape their lives, and subsistence autonomy, understood as material and financial independence. His work is situated at the intersection of migration, anti‑racism, ecology and rural communities.

Photo: Fleur Mounier

A portrait of Allianz Foundation project manager Alban Genty

Your contact: Alban Genty

If you have any questions about our Fellows, please contact Alban.

Alban Genty develops formats for the Allianz Foundation Fellows Programme . He also works on funding projects in the field of European civil society, addressing issues such as the rule of law, independent journalism, and technology.

alban.genty@allianzfoundation.org