ZfKf, the Centre for Cultural Research in Germany (http://www.kulturforschung.de), is located in St. Augustin near Bonn and Berlin. Established in 1970 as a subsidiary of DER SPIEGEL magazine, it was founded as an independent research body in 1972.

The ZfKf conducts interdisciplinary and empirical research, provides documentation, organises monitoring and evaluation projects and provides consultancy services in various fields of cultural policy, media and cultural education.

Major activities undertaken by the ZfKf during the last 40 years have been:

1. Empirical surveys of arts professions, including legal and social aspects;
2. Studies on cultural infrastructure and development of the arts and "culture industries" at (inter)national and regional levels;
3. International comparative studies of arts and media policies and funding;
4. Studies on education and training (including new concepts for arts administration);
5. Conceptual support for foundations, artists' associations, research bodies;
6. Surveys on the participation of the public in cultural life;
7. Applied anthropological research and cross-cultural studies.

During the 1970's, the most important project undertaken by the ZfKf was the The Artists' Survey ("Künstler-Report") which was conducted on behalf of the German Ministry of Labour (BMA) and the Federal Parliament. The findings of the "Artists' Report" were based mainly on 3000 comprehensive oral interviews with artists and media professionals in different fields. Together with additional ZfKf-research on legal questions, the Report greatly contributed to the creation of a special artists' insurance programme in Germanyn (KSVG). During the 1980's, the ZfKf published international comparative studies on cultural policies and arts funding and introduced co-operation in the field of  "arts management" in Germany.

Since the 1990's, the ZfKf conducted various culture industries studies for several Länder-Governments and increasingly focused on researching various aspects of arts and (inter)cultural education for the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

The ZfKf is recognised as a pioneer institution in the development of empirical studies and reports on the status of women in arts and media professions, both in Germany and wider Europe, starting with "Frauen in Kultur und Medienbetrieb I" in 1987.