vhs – Volkshochschule Frankfurt am Main

As an important partner in the World Design Capital (WDC) year 2026, the Frankfurt Adult Education Center (Volkshochschule, VHS) is dedicating its entire program for the first half of the year to the theme Design for Democracy. In doing so, it links its broad educational offerings to the core topics of the WDC 2026, creating new ways of engaging with questions of design, participation and social transformation.

Across a wide range of formats, the theme becomes tangible in innovative ways – for example, in courses such as “Practicing Democracy in Everyday Life,” “Family Council – Democracy Begins at Home,” or “Lego Serious Game – Playfully Creating the City of the Future.” Creative perspectives on democracy and urban society are also offered in programs like “Urban Sketching – Drawing Frankfurt’s Places of Memory,” “Democracy in Focus – Creative Photography and Book Design,” and “Architecture, Education, and Democracy – Learning Spaces of the Future.” TUMO Frankfurt is another part of the education centre and presents itself as a space for creative technologies aimed specifically at young people.

Special cooperative projects with partner institutions – including PRIF, the Frankfurt Network for Collaborative Housing, Architects for Future, and the LOEWE Research Cluster “Architectures of Order” promote close interdisciplinary exchange.

In addition, 3 WDC regulars tables will be organized jointly with the VHS, strengthening dialogue between the diverse audiences of both the VHS and WDC 2026. Together, these initiatives create a rich educational program that makes democratic thinking and design tangible in everyday life.