The Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations is operating worldwide to provide information about foreign cultural policy.

The library of the Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations is the only library all over the world that covers foreign cultural policy and international cultural relations and the connected and succeeding subjects. Apart from German-language publications, a selection of important international publications dealing with politico-cultural affairs are also available.

As the official documentation centre of the Federal Republic of Germany for foreign cultural policy and international cultural relations it is archiving

the basic texts in the internet of the Federal Foreign Office about foreign cultural and education policy,

the bilateral cultural contracts with the Federal Republic of Germany and

the international and European cultural agreements, legal acts of international and European organisations and political documents and last acts of international and European conferences about cultural policy and cooperation concerning the Federal Republic of Germany.

Its areas of collections embraces:

concepts of Foreign Cultural Policy,

institutions dealing with foreign cultural relations,

history and development of Foreign Cultural Policy,

cultural factors of globalisation,

multilateral cultural cooperation (Europe, UNESCO),

foreign languages policy,

relations in sciences (exchange of students and academics),

schools abroad,

exchange in fine arts and literature, reception research,

cultural exchange in frontier regions,

cultural factors of international media policy.

The for Foreign Cultural Relations organises conferences about foreign cultural policy as well as art exchange.

The journal KULTURAUSTAUSCH – Journal for international perspectives, published by the ifa, is edited quarterly with the aim to show topical subjects of the international cultural relations from unusual points of view. A central topic of interest in every issue focuses the increasing importance of cultural processes in the globalised world.