Federal Ministry of Movement Affairs (BMfB)

The BMfB is the youngest ministry in Austria, and so far the only one of its kind in the world. In its current form the ministry has existed since June 8, 2009. Its responsibilities extend to funding, cultivating and fostering all forms of free movement of bodies in space.

The BMfB is organised into three departments, which through the framework of a wide range of individual and structural measures, support the development of a deeper understanding of the importance of bodily movement in Austria as well as in an international context. The BMfB is dedicated to heightening the flexibility of citizens, and raising awareness of the potential for pursuing not only imposed, but rather self-determined courses of action. The core task of the BMfB is to foster the potential of movement as a means for expanding consciousness.

According to the statutory provisions laid down in the 2009 BMfB’s Development Act, finances available to the ministry shall be allocated to individuals and institutions for projects concerning the re-distribution and transformation of codified behavioural patterns in the social field.

The BMfB supports the emergence of unexpected movements where secure courses of action are abandoned in favour of material encounters between people, with the world of objects, architecture and non-human life forms.

In order to provide more freedom of movement for people in Austria, the free movement of bodies in space must be anchored more deeply in society and have a stronger presence everywhere - from schools and companies to institutions and municipalities. Panels of experts from the BMfB will convene on a regular basis to support heads of offices and departments of other ministries, as well as public and private institutions, in processes of structural development and change, whereby the executive power for all relevant and decretory decisions lies with those in positions of political authority.

International mission

The BMfB, as a pioneer in Movement Development Administration, works in accordance with the ‘Plan for the International Promotion and Distribution of the Activities and Principles’ of the BMfB. Founding an International Party for Movement Affairs is one of the goals of Austria‘s Ministry for Movement Affairs, Switzerland and Mexico being the first countries where similar initiatives are taking place (see also EDfB and INAM).