--- eventsindex_id: EI-07017 slug: off-rencontres-economiques-aix title: OFF des Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence title_alt: - Le OFF des Rencontres Éco - OFF Rencontres Économiques Aix canonical_url: https://eventsindex.org/events/off-rencontres-economiques-aix.html next_edition_dates: 2026-06-27 to 2026-07-04 next_edition_year: 2026 date_start: '2026-06-27' date_end: '2026-07-04' venue: City-wide, multiple venues across Aix-en-Provence (information point at Fontaine de la Rotonde) city: Aix-en-Provence country: France organiser: Le Cercle des Économistes organiser_url: https://www.lesrencontreseconomiques.fr/off-rencontres-economiques/ b2b: true vector: sector: - economic-forums audience: - general-public - students - youth - families - educators format: - festival purpose: - networking geography_scope: - Western-Europe season: summer meta_description: 'OFF des Rencontres Économiques d''Aix-en-Provence: free public fringe programme, 27 June-4 July 2026, 45+ events across the city.' editorial_take: 'The OFF positions itself as the democratic counterweight to one of France''s most prestigious closed economic forums: a free, city-wide programme that brings the same annual debate theme into public squares, schools, and cinemas across Aix-en-Provence for eight days.' generated_by: enrich-cowork (N1/N2/N3) last_verified: '2026-06-11' schema_version: v8.0 language: en --- # OFF des Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence > *The free, city-wide public companion to one of France's most prominent economic forums: eight days of open debates, film screenings, exhibitions, walking tours, and youth workshops spread across Aix-en-Provence, bringing the year's central economic question out of the conference hall and into the street.* --- ## Quick Facts | DATES | VENUE | ORGANISER | ATTENDANCE | |---|---|---|---| | 27 June – 4 July 2026 | City-wide, Aix-en-Provence (info point: Fontaine de la Rotonde) | Le Cercle des Économistes | 1,200+ in 2025 (according to the organiser) | ## Definition The OFF des Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence is the free, open-access fringe programme built around the Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence, the annual economic forum held at Parc Jourdan from 2 to 4 July 2026. Where the main forum is an invitation-only gathering of policymakers, executives, and economists, the OFF is its public-facing counterpart: a rolling programme of 45+ events distributed across the city's squares, cultural venues, schools, cinemas, and public spaces. The OFF was launched in 2025 by Le Cercle des Économistes with the explicit goal of making economic debate accessible and participatory. The 2026 edition shares the main forum's annual theme, "Navigating a World Without Landmarks," and runs from 27 June to 4 July, surrounding the main event on both sides. ## What is the OFF des Rencontres Économiques and how does it relate to the main forum? The Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence is an annual forum founded in 2001 by Le Cercle des Économistes, held each summer over three days at Parc Jourdan in Aix-en-Provence. It gathers more than 410 speakers from roughly 55 countries for structured debates on a single annual theme. Access to the main forum is by invitation or accreditation. The OFF is the programme that exists alongside and around this forum, designed for citizens who are not attending the closed sessions but who live in or are visiting Aix-en-Provence during the same period. The OFF is not a watered-down version of the main forum. It deliberately uses different formats: city walks framing economics through urban history, theatre productions, film-and-debate evenings, scavenger hunts, café discussions, participatory workshops, and school activities. The same annual theme runs through both programmes, creating a coherent public conversation that extends well beyond Parc Jourdan. In 2026, the OFF programme was co-designed with 55 local partner organisations including associations, schools, cultural institutions, and businesses, all of which submitted proposals through an open call for projects with a deadline of 27 February 2026. ## Who attends OFF des Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence The OFF is designed to be genuinely open to everyone. There is no registration requirement for most events and no fee. The programme explicitly targets audiences that would not typically enter an economic forum: - Residents of Aix-en-Provence and the surrounding area curious about the annual theme - Students and school groups, including primary and secondary age participants - Families looking for culturally substantive free activities during the summer - Local entrepreneurs, shopkeepers, and members of professional associations - Cultural visitors to Aix-en-Provence during the festival period - Educators and community facilitators working on civic education - Anyone interested in economics in non-academic, accessible formats The mix of audiences signals something deliberate: the OFF is a civic infrastructure project, not a side event. The presence of families alongside educators and local businesses in the same programme reflects a commitment to showing that economic questions are not the exclusive domain of experts. ## What OFF des Rencontres Économiques covers programmatically The 2026 theme, "Navigating a World Without Landmarks" ("Naviguer dans un monde sans repères"), serves as the connective thread for the entire OFF programme. Each event in the programme engages with some dimension of this question, whether through direct debate, artistic interpretation, or participatory exploration. Formats for 2026 include economic walking tours through Aix-en-Provence (framing the city's physical development through an economics lens), a theatre production exploring wealth and aspiration, film screenings followed by moderated discussions, a city-wide scavenger hunt themed around economist Charles de Ribbe, and a series of café-style roundtables inviting residents to speak about their own relationship to economic uncertainty. Recurring subject areas across OFF programming reflect the broader Rencontres Économiques tradition: geopolitical reordering and its effect on households, the relationship between cultural production and economic conditions, intergenerational questions about work and consumption, and the role of local institutions in periods of national and global disruption. The OFF does not replicate the main forum's panel format; instead, each event is selected for its capacity to invite active audience participation rather than passive spectatorship. Events run daily from 27 June through 4 July, with the information and welcome point located at the Fontaine de la Rotonde, open 10:00 to 18:00. ## Edition history and context The OFF was created in 2025, making the 2026 edition only its second iteration. It was launched by Le Cercle des Économistes as a structural extension of the Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence, which itself was founded in 2001. The OFF therefore enters 2026 at a very early stage of its history, described by its organisers as an effort to "change scale" and "anchor itself more deeply in the local fabric" compared to its inaugural year. The 2025 edition attracted more than 1,200 participants according to the organiser. The 2026 edition, with 45+ events and 55 partner organisations, represents a significant expansion in scope and local partnership. ## FAQ · Identity and audience ### Is the OFF part of the Rencontres Économiques or a separate event? The OFF is an integral programme of Les Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence, organised by the same body, Le Cercle des Économistes, and sharing the same annual theme. It is not a third-party fringe or a parallel festival with an independent identity. However, it operates under a distinct access model (free, public, city-wide) and through entirely different formats from the main forum. The two programmes are complementary by design. ### Do I need to register or have an invitation to attend OFF events? The majority of OFF events are free and require no registration or accreditation. They take place in public spaces and cultural venues across Aix-en-Provence. Some specific events may require prior sign-up through the programme's official page; the organiser communicates registration requirements event by event. The welcome point at Fontaine de la Rotonde (open 10:00-18:00 daily) provides the full programme and any event-specific information. ### What language are OFF events conducted in? The OFF programme is conducted in French. Events are aimed primarily at local residents, French students, and French-speaking visitors to Aix-en-Provence. There is no dedicated English-language programming within the OFF, though some events may involve international participants reflecting the main forum's multilingual character. ### Who is OFF des Rencontres Économiques NOT designed for? - Professionals seeking networking access to the main forum's invitation-only speaker roster - Delegates looking for the structured panel debate format of the main Rencontres Économiques - Attendees expecting a ticketed festival experience with curated entry points - Visitors whose primary interest is the high-level international policy sessions at Parc Jourdan - Those looking for English-language programming or simultaneous interpretation ## The organiser: Le Cercle des Économistes Le Cercle des Économistes is a French think tank founded in 1992 by economist Jean-Hervé Lorenzi, with the stated mission of "opening economic debate." It operates from Paris and coordinates the Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence, which it created in 2001 as its flagship annual gathering. The Cercle gathers economists, researchers, and public intellectuals and publishes analysis through its website and through contributions to French and European media. Its Twitter handle is @Cercle_eco. The Cercle launched the OFF in 2025 as a direct response to a recurring challenge for high-profile economic forums: the gap between the debate that takes place inside the venue and the communities that host the event. The OFF is Le Cercle's institutional answer to that gap. By coordinating with 55 local organisations, setting an open call for project proposals, and placing its welcome point in one of Aix-en-Provence's most visible public squares, the Cercle has committed to a model in which the city itself becomes part of the event infrastructure. The email contact for the OFF is reaix-off@cercledeseconomistes.fr. --- ## Editorial take *The OFF des Rencontres Économiques d'Aix-en-Provence is a rare case in the European forum circuit: a free, city-wide civic programme deliberately designed to dissolve the boundary between a closed expert forum and the public that surrounds it, anchored in one of France's most intellectually prominent annual gatherings.* ## How to register and what it costs The OFF is free and open to the public. No ticket purchase or accreditation is required for the vast majority of events. Anyone can attend by showing up at the relevant venue at the announced time; the welcome and information point at Fontaine de la Rotonde provides the daily programme and logistical details throughout the eight-day run. For events that require prior registration (which the organiser identifies on the official programme page), sign-up can be completed through the official OFF website. The open-call model used to build the programme also means that partner organisations handle their own attendance logistics for certain events. There is no paid tier or VIP access within the OFF: the free and open model applies to all. ## FAQ · Access and practicalities ### How do I find the full programme and locate specific events? The full programme is published on the official website at lesrencontreseconomiques.fr/off-rencontres-economiques/. A physical information point is open daily at Fontaine de la Rotonde, Aix-en-Provence, from 10:00 to 18:00 during the eight-day programme. The organiser can also be contacted directly at reaix-off@cercledeseconomistes.fr. ### Can I participate in the OFF without attending the main Rencontres Économiques forum? Yes. The OFF is entirely independent in terms of access: attending the main forum at Parc Jourdan is not required and confers no benefit for OFF events. The two programmes share a theme and an organiser, but their access models are completely separate. The OFF exists precisely to serve audiences who cannot or do not wish to attend the invitation-only main event. ### Is the OFF only active on the days of the main forum (2-4 July)? No. The OFF runs from 27 June to 4 July 2026, with eight full days of programming that begins before the main forum opens and continues through its closing day. This means roughly half the OFF programme takes place before the main forum even starts, reflecting the organisers' intent to build city-wide engagement progressively rather than concentrating activity on the three forum days. ## Resources | Resource | URL | |---|---| | Official OFF page | https://www.lesrencontreseconomiques.fr/off-rencontres-economiques/ | | Organiser (Le Cercle des Économistes) | https://lecercledeseconomistes.fr | | Partner call for projects | https://www.lesrencontreseconomiques.fr/envie-de-vous-associer-au-off/ | | Twitter / X | https://twitter.com/Cercle_eco | --- **Last verified:** 2026-06-11 **Next review:** 2026-07-11 **Notes:** Attendance figure of 1,200+ for 2025 is self-reported by the organiser. The count of 45+ events and 55 partner organisations is stated on the official website for 2026. The OFF was created in 2025; 2026 is its second edition. The main Rencontres Économiques (separate record) runs 2-4 July 2026 at Parc Jourdan. Le Cercle des Économistes founding year (1992) sourced from press coverage. No English-language speakers or sessions confirmed for the OFF specifically. **Variables:** 34/58 **Concept definition:** not applicable