Essential info

SNF Nostos is an open event hosted by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) in Greece, bursting with scintillating conversation, daring ideas, timely food for thought, electrifying music, and activities for visitors of all ages. 

Based at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) in Athens and extending across Greece, from June 21 – 28, SNF Nostos 2026 will look both back on three decades of impact through SNF partnerships and forward to what lies ahead for humanity. Through talks, performances, music, sport, participatory art, and community experiences, SNF Nostos 2026 invites people to connect, reflect, and imagine the future together.

SNF Nostos is organized and made possible with exclusive support from SNF.

The SNF Nostos Conference is the cornerstone of SNF Nostos, and it returns this year in a reimagined form. This year, the SNF Nostos Conference spans five days and is structured by “Houses,” each tied to themes in SNF’s grantmaking. From June 22 – 25, visitors can explore discussions, exhibitions, activities at the House of Arts & Culture, the House of Civics & Education, the House of Health & Sports, and the House of Future reflecting different threads of SNF’s—and, critically, SNF’s partners’—work. On the fifth day, June 26, the SNF Nostos Conference culminates in what we’re calling the Core of the Conference, a day full of fascinating discussion, delightful events, SNF Dialogues, and much more. The SNF Nostos Conference is curated with our close partners at the journalism nonprofit iMEdD. A global SNF Nostos Youth Advisory Committee helps make sure perspectives from all ages are represented.

The SNF Nostos Conference takes place primarily at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) in Athens, with events held at the Dome, the Lighthouse, the Alternative Stage, the Library Lobby, Stavros Niarchos Hall, and Stavros Niarchos Park. 

Registration is required to attend. Please note that admission to each session will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. 

Almost all SNF Nostos Conference discussions are held in English, with interpretation into Greek available via headset.

The SNF Nostos Conference is intended to be an event open and accessible to all participants. True to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation’s (SNF) vision in creating it as a space open to all, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), which is SNF Nostos’s homebase, was designed to be fully accessible to people with disabilities.

You can find detailed information on getting to the SNFCC here.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) has an enclosed parking garage with 1,000 spots, open 24/7. For more information on other transit options, please consult the SNFCC website.

Activities throughout the week complement the SNF Nostos Conference program and offer opportunities for relaxation, connection, and creative fun. The majority of the activities are free; some may require registration.

On June 21, David Byrne will put on an extraordinary show at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), as part of his Who Is the Sky? tour, filled with legendary songs from his Talking Heads and solo career. On June 25, Gorillaz is coming to Greece for the first time ever to treat visitors to an explosive audiovisual experience at Plateia Nerou. Find details on the Release Athens x SNF Nostos concerts.

All throughout the week, from Sunday through Sunday, extracurricular activities at the SNFCC will cast light on new facets of some of the same themes the conference covers, from the arts to sports to technology and ethics. Visitors will have the chance to attend three different performances by the GNO ballet; explore Artefacts of the Future, an exhibition by ETH Zurich whose imagined relics from the future will spark discussion on ethical conundrums; watch the World Cup; dive into an interactive experience offering an immersive look at SNF’s grantmaking through time and space; run for a good cause at the SNF Nostos Run; dance to the beat at a celebratory DJ party; and so much more.

SNF Nostos includes the SNF Nostos Conference, the SNF Dialogues, the SNF Nostos Run, performances and plays, as well as concerts as part of the Release Athens Χ SNF Nostos collaboration. Participating in the SNF Nostos Conference and the SNF Dialogues is free with online registration, and admission to the sessions will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. Most of the additional activities will be free, unless stated otherwise, and some may require registration.

Through support from SNF, Release Athens x SNF Nostos offers affordable tickets to concerts at Plateia Nerou and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) Great Lawn.

No, your SNF Nostos Conference registration exclusively covers the SNF Nostos Conference, including the SNF Dialogues discussion. To attend the Release Athens x SNF Nostos concerts, you will need to purchase a ticket. Please see next question for more info.

To attend the concerts taking place as part of Release Athens x SNF Nostos on June 21 and 25 at the SNFCC Great Lawn and at Plateia Nerou, respectively, you will need to purchase a ticket. Find out more at releaseathens.gr.

* To celebrate 30 years of grantmaking, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) is collaborating with Release Athens to bring the music closer to everyone, and with SNF’s support, ticket prices are 40-50% lower than is typical for similar event.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) may take photos and record videos of SNF Nostos events taking place at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), as well as of the events taking place at Plateia Nerou and the SNFCC Great Lawn as part of Release Athens X SNF Nostos, and of the open houses at the SNF hospitals. This material, in its entirety or embedded in other audiovisual media, may be published by SNF Nostos in order to promote SNF Nostos 2026 events on its official websites and social media platforms.