Tools for Action was started in 2010 by visual artist Artúr van Balen, who is a core member in a constantly evolving multidisciplinary group of artists, designers, choreographers, activists and educators. ​Tools for Action draws on the paradoxical qualities of inflatable objects: their simultaneous mobility, impressive size, and fragility. ​Inflatables are floating and light-weight tactical tools, ideal for sending political messages, disrupting protests and blocking streets. Tools for Action ́s practice is rooted in popular pedagogical practice, historical research and skillshare workshops, at the intersections between design, performance and visual arts, bringing together people with inflatable sculptures to form barricades, swarms and temporary assemblies. 

The organization was born out of a sense of urgency, in direct intense collaboration with the international climate movement since 2009. For the past decade, Tools for Action has been working with social movements, schools, universities and theaters around the world on different issues: climate justice, anti-facism, trans* visibility and civic engagement. 

In 2019 Tools for Action became an official non-profit foundation (Tools for Action Foundation) and moved its headquarters from Berlin to Rotterdam. For the coming years, Tools for Action will be working on new tools at the intersection of fine arts, interactive electronics and choreography, searching for new forms for public assembly for commemorating the past and shaping the future.