A council that represents the audience and at the same calls on the city, the country, Europe and the entire world to join the Free Republic of Vienna.

The core of the council is formed by eighty Viennese citizens who accompany the entire festival as well as of international artists, activists and intellectuals who are honorary members of the Council. In June 2024, the Free Republic of Vienna gave itself its own constitution: the Vienna Declaration. It contains ten rules defined by the Council of the Republic, based on which the Vienna Festival is set to transform into a festival of the future by the year 2028. Essential points were addressed: Who is in charge of curatorship? Do we need quotas — and if so, which? How do we respond to calls to cancel artists? And how might the Vienna Festival become even more open to the city and the world?