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Policies for Culture news
The Belgrade workshop on cultural policy research in SEE: less setbacks and more prospects (October 2-3) The international workshop "Cultural policy research in the countries of South East Europe: setbacks and prospects", organised by Policies for Culture in the framework of its Task Force for Cultural Policy Research, brought together almost 40 experts, researchers, cultural operators and representatives of international organisations working in the field from the countries in the region, Western Europe and the USA. During the two days of debates, participants have agreed upon the urgent need for coordinated and sustainable action in this direction. The Policies for Culture Task Force on research will now start elaborating a plan for further activities, focused on the main directions identified during the workshop, namely: 1. Making use of and further developing the existing research infrastructures; 2. Establishing a research focus on issues that touch the economical and political levels in SEE and promoting an interest for research related to the creative industries, the relationship between arts and building of social capital, culture and development, culture and employment, etc.; 3. Giving sustainability and weight to the research activity itself by developing partnerships with exisitng institutions, initiatives and events, by facilitating encounters and exchanges between cultural policy researchers in the region, etc.; 4. Raising awareness in the region about global issues and regional challenges. The report of the meeting will be soon available on the programme's website. For more details, the workshop agenda and the list of participants, write to info@policiesforculture.org or visit www.policiesforculture.org.
Action project update: "Identifying and implementing new efficient funding mechanisms for the cultural sector in the Republic of Moldova". International conference to take place on October 16 (Chisinau, Republic of Moldova) Following the phase of identification and analysis of different funding mechanisms for the cultural sector, and considering the specific context in Moldova, the expert group of the project coordinated by "Alternativa Noua" Association has decided to propose the set up of an alternative funding mechanism similar to that of cultural funds which have been developed throughout Eastern Europe in the last decade. This proposal and its feasibility, as well as the ways of putting into practice, will be discussed during an international conference which will take place on October 16 in Chisinau. The debate will also be fed by the experience of the similar mechanisms developed in Estonia and Hungary, i.e. the Cultural Endowment of Estonia and the National Cultural Fund in Hungary. Following the conference, a concrete legislative proposal for the setup of the fund will be finalised and submitted to Moldovan authorities in view of further discussion and adoption. For more information please contact Veaceslav Reabcinschi at slava@mcc.md or visit the page dedicated to this project.
Action project update: Launching the follow-up to the action project "The Construction of the cultural strategy for the Timis County, a model of social dialogue": national dissemination (Timisoara, Romania) The Intercultural Institute Timisoara, initiator and coordinator of the project "The Construction of a the cultural strategy for the Timis County, a model of social dialogue", which was implemented from May 2001 to February 2002, has recently launched a follow up to this project. The present initiative is aimed at disseminating the methodology and results of the project in two development regions of Romania (gathering 12 counties), in the framework of two workshops to take place in November 2004. "The Cultural Strategy of the Timis County" will be presented as a model of good practice given its contribution to the development of the local cultural scene by balancing the different cultural fields in what concerns the allocated budgets, by increasing access of NGOs to public funding, by harmonizing the interests of the public authorities and decision makers with those of the cultural actors. For more details contact Corina Raceanu, project coordinator, at iit@intercultural.ro or visit www.intercultural.ro.
Action project update: ARCult: Culture in the political campaign for the upcoming Romanian parliamentary elections (Bucharest, Romania) On October 27, the ECUMEST Association, in partnership with the Romanian Academic Society (SAR), will organise the roundtable "Cultural policies - Alternative proposals in view of the November 2004 parliamentary elections". The event will bring together representatives of the main political parties, invited to present the political proposals of their party in the field of culture in view of the upcoming elections, and to answer to several critical key issues in the field. The debate will also gather representatives of cultural organisations, unions, and mass media. The event is part of a series of similar roundtables on different policy issues under the title Alternative Ideas initiated by SAR. For more details contact the ECUMEST Association at ecumest@ecumest.ro or visit www.ecumest.ro, where more details will be soon available. |
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News from the region
EU Enlargement news: Release of the Strategy Paper on Bulgaria’s and Romania’s progress towards accession & the pre-accession strategy for Croatia. EU to reopen talks on Serbia and Montenegro On the 6th October 2004, the European Commission has adopted a Strategy paper on Bulgaria’s and Romania’s progress towards accession, which also contains the pre-accession strategy for Croatia. As in previous years, the Commission has also released 3 Regular Reports on the progress towards accession of Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey for 2004. With relevance to the cultural field, the reports mention the provisional closing of the negotiations on Chapter 20: Culture and Audiovisual Policy for both Bulgaria and Romania. To consult these reports visit: http://europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/report_2004/.
The EU foreign ministers also expressed support on 11 October for the Commission's aim to relaunch efforts to put Serbia and Montenegro back on track for possible EU membership. According to External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten, the EU "[does] not want to see Serbia and Montenegro fall behind its neighbours". The Commission has said that it would relaunch its feasibility report on whether to open negotiations with Serbia and Montenegro for a Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) leading to full EU membership, which could be completed by early 2005. Details are available here.
Bulgaria: International seminar "The Legislative Reform in the Field of Cultural Heritage in South-East Europe" (Sofia, October 7-9) The objective of the recently finalised seminar was to contribute to the establishment of common principles of appropriate legislative frameworks in cultural heritage, its links with the strategies, policies and guiding principles implemented by the institutions with elaboration of proper management tools. The new legislation should strengthen the ability of the cultural sector to carry out and manage complex projects aimed at its further development. The task of the legal norms is also to affirm the heritage (architectural, urban, vernacular, archaeological, movable and natural) as a factor of sustainable social and economic development with respect to the traditions and identities of the various populations of the countries concerned. This seminar has been organised by the Ministry of Culture of Bulgaria and the Directorate "Culture and Cultural and Natural Heritage" of the Council of Europe, within its Regional Programme for Cultural and Natural Heritage in South-East Europe (2003-2005). The event has enjoyed the financial assistance of Central European Initiative. For more information please contact Peter Miladinov, Bulgarian National Program coordinator, at p.miladinov@culture.government.bg, or Tsveta Andreeva, International Cultural Policy Directorate, Ministry of Culture of Bulgaria, at c.andreeva@culture.government.bg, or visit the programme's website.
Croatia: Conference "Emerging Collaborative Practices - Shaping European Cultural Framework" (Zagreb, October 15-16) The conference will take place on the 15th and 16th of October 2004 in Zagreb and is being organised by the "Zagreb - Cultural Kapital of Europe 3000" project on behalf of the "policy_forum" initiative (Zagreb) and in partnership with the Felix Meritis Foundation (Amsterdam) as a pre-conference to the "Berlin Conference for European Cultural Policy" (26-28 November). The presentations, meetings and discussions held during this pre-conference will provide an opportunity to reflect on how innovative practices and platforms of socio-cultural collaboration and tactical networking in the Eastern Europe can be brought to bear on the agenda of European cultural policy and European political culture. For more details contact Teodor Celakoski, at teodor@mi2.hr or Tomislav Medak, at to-me@mi2.hr, Mama Multimedia Institute Zagreb.
Romania: Roundtable "Go create… Europe" (Bucharest, October 25) This roundtable is organised by the ECUMEST Association in Bucharest in the framework of the National Theatre Festival, as another pre-conference to the "Berlin Conference for European Cultural Policy". More and more debates are currently taking place throughout Europe about the role culture could and should play in building Europe and advocating for a stronger support of the European Union for cooperation in the arts and culture. In this context, the present roundtable aims to facilitate a familiarization of the Romanian cultural sector with these initiatives and with the different viewpoints at European level, as well as to launch this discussion in Romania and to involve the Romanian cultural sector in these larger debates. The audience of the roundtable will gather cultural operators, public authorities representatives, as well as representatives of foreign cultural centres in Romania. For more details write to ecumest@ecumest.ro or visit www.ecumest.ro. |
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Projects and Initiatives
New European Commissioner for Culture On August 12, 2004, Jose Manuel Barroso, the designated president of the European Commission, has nominated the 24 commissioners. The new commission will start its work on the 1st of November, after the validation of the European Parliament. Jan Figel from Slovakia was nominated as the new commissioner for culture. Previously he was chief negotiator for the Slovak accession to the EU. During his hearing at the European Parliament, Jan Figel quoted the well-known words of Jean Monnet who towards the end of his life had said that, if he could begin European unification again, he would start with culture. Mr Figel also stated its belief that culture and education were vital aspects of European identity, citizenship and quality of life. For more information about Jan Figel's background and projects visit the European Commission website.
Culture 2007 A new generation of EU programmes was adopted by the European Commission in July 2004. According to these proposals, Culture 2007 will be taking over from the current Culture 2000 programme and extending it, with a proposed budget of EUR 408 million, through three objectives considered to offer strong European added value: 1. transnational mobility for everyone working in the cultural sector in the EU; 2. the transnational circulation of works of art and cultural/artistic products; 3. Intercultural dialogue. For evaluations and studies on Culture 2000, as well as the guidelines for the future new generation programme, visit the European Commission dedicated webpage. |
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Upcoming Events
October 11-15: INCD Annual Meeting (Shanghai, China) The International Network for Cultural Diversity is holding its Annual Meeting in Shanghai, China from October 11-15, 2004. The agenda includes, among others, a review of the recent developments on the proposed UNESCO Convention for cultural diversity, and discussion in view of establishing advocacy strategies and priorities for building cultural capacity in the developing world. Several observers will attend the INCD meetings and all will be invited to participate in a one-day conference on October 13, being hosted jointly by the Shanghai Federation of Literary and Arts Circles and the INCD, on the same theme - "Traditional Cultures and Modernization" - as the INCP meeting being held later in the week. As in the past, the INCD will make a presentation to the Ministers of Culture gathered for the annual meeting of the International Network on Cultural Policy (INCP). A report of the events will be published in the next INCD newsletter. For more information write to Jennifer Heale, INCD administrator, at incd@ccarts.ca or visit www.incd.net.
Reminder: October 21-23: 6th Rencontres Europeennes de Cluj: The conditions of the artistic creation in the enlarged Europe (Cluj-Napoca, Romania) The French Cultural Centre in Cluj-Napoca organises, between the 21st and 23rd of October 2004, the 6th Annual European Workshop - three days of workshops and public debates about the cultural and creative dimension of the European integration. The Annual European Workshop's goal is to examine the role of culture in the European integration process and the relationship between different cultural actors in the member countries, the new joining countries and the candidate countries for the integration in the European Union; the development of cultural relations between the Eastern and Western countries, at the prospect of the EU enlargement; the contribution of cultural actors: artists, agents, intellectuals, journalists to an even bigger opening of borders to creative cooperation. For the detailed programme of the event and further information, please contact Irina Costiuc at irina_costiuc@ccfc.ro or visit www.ccfc.ro/01/re.html.
October 28 - November 31: Les Rencontres de Lille (Lille, France) Les Rencontres - Association of European Cities and Regions for Culture organises its annual meeting from 28th through 31st October 2004. This year the meeting will be held in Lille, as part of the events of Lille 2004, on the theme "Europeans and their Films". The aim of this event is to examine the actions that local governments throughout Europe can and should undertake in the "cinematographic chain". Between 150 and 200 delegates will gather from all the countries of the European continent whether they are members of the EU or not. Delegates will be invited at the end of the debates to approve the Declaration of Lille to be submitted to European institutions in order to make progress on the important issues at stake, such as the distribution of films, cultural diversity, digital films, municipal cinemas, etc. For more details write to Sylvie Tossah, Project Manager, at sylvie.tossah@lesrencontres.org or visit www.lesrencontres.org.
Reminder & update: October 28-31 : General Assembly of EFAH (Lille, France) The 12th Annual General Assembly of the European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (EFAH) and a conference entitled "Moving Territories: Culture in a Europe of Regions", will be held in Lille on 28-31 October 2004. Europe's regions are extremely important politico-administrative entities. The aim of this conference is to place the issues of culture and cultural development at the core of the debates on decentralisation, regionalisation, distinction and social and economic development. For more information please contact Sara Pavanello, Conference Coordinator, at lille04@efah.org, or visit www.efah.org.
Reminder: November 26-28: Berlin Conference for European Cultural Policy (Berlin, Germany) Greater emphasis on cultural policy in Europe - that is what the Berlin Conference for European Cultural Policy in November 2004 demands. Not primarily for the sake of culture itself, but rather in the interest of Europe's future and the difficult process of European unification. The process of unification can meet with success only if the specific weight of culture is reflected in public awareness and in EU decisions. This conference will present this thesis in two steps: by stating reasons for the necessity of community cultural policy in the process of European unification; by stating the functions ensuing from this necessity and requiring to be fulfilled by a EU cultural policy. In the preparation of the conference, besides the questionnaire-based debate launched by the Felix Meritis Foundation in Amsterdam, a series of pre-conferences have been organised in different countries in South East Europe (see the current and past e-bulletin issues for details). For more information visit: www.berlinerkonferenz.net. |
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Opportunities
European Diploma in Cultural Project Management 2005/2006 Application deadline: 15 January 2005 The European Diploma in Cultural Project Management proposed by the Marcel Hicter Foundation is a training and learning experience fostering cultural diversity and interregional exchanges as a way of giving culture a stronger place within Europe. The main aims of this pan-European programme are to make participants aware of challenges within their field of action and influence and to develop approaches and tools needed for co-operative and creative cultural workforce in Europe. Each year, around 25 professionals from 20 countries take part in the European Diploma. Since 1989, 350 cultural managers from 41 countries followed this course. The programme is supported by the Council of Europe. For more information visit www.fondation-hicter.org.
Andrew W. Mellon - East-Central European Research Visiting Fellowships 2005/ 2006 in the Humanities and Social Sciences Application deadline: November 30, 2004 (date of receipt) The Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC) and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) jointly award Andrew W. Mellon Visiting Fellowships in the Humanities and Social Sciences. The three-month fellowships, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will enable scholars from Eastern and Central Europe to work in Vienna on research projects of their choice within the framework of the scholarly community and activities of the IWM. The IWM is accepting applications from scholars (who should be Ph.D. and hold a senior academic position level) from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia for its Andrew W. Mellon Visiting Fellowships. For more information write to fellowships@iwm.at or visit www.iwm.at. |
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Publications & Information Resources
How to love Madonna, understand Shakespeare and create something new. Complexities in contemporary arts and cultural management October 2004, Boekmanstudies. Interview by Mary Ann DeVlieg, Secretary General of the Informal European Theatre Meeting IETM (Brussels), with Corina Suteu, President of the ECUMEST Association, released during the recent Conference "A Portrait of the Artist in 2015" (Amsterdam, October 8-10). The interview represents an introduction to the upcoming book "Academic and professional training in cultural management and cultural policies, another brick in the wall", signed by Corina Suteu, currently in print at Boekmanstudies. Infrastructures for the Arts that were created, especially in the West in the latter half of the twentieth century, have reversed the natural dynamics of creativity. This is an interview about the need for new models to: drive inter-disciplinary work; encourage international exchanges; support the use of new technology; challenge artists' training; educate audiences and breed an ability in both artists and the public to criticize the Arts. For more details visit www.boekman.nl.
Report of the Congress on Cultural Rights and Human Development September 2004. This document comprises a summary of the main ideas and conclusions gathered in the course of the Congress and brief outlines of each plenary session and workshops held in Barcelona between 24 and 27 August 2004, in addition to an introduction to the context of the Congress and the full programme of the event. Consult the report here.
New media culture policy recommendations released August 2004. A strategy for the international development of New media culture policy - the Helsinki Agenda - has been proposed by the participants to the expert meeting on media arts and media culture policy, which took place on 22-23 August. The paper outlines the values of new media culture, provides 11 recommendations and three proposals for further action. The meeting was co-hosted by IFACCA, the Arts Council of Finland and m-cult centre for new media culture during ISEA2004, the 12th International Symposium on Electronic Art. Consult the paper at IFACCA website.
Intercultural Mediation in the Balkans July 2004, The University Book, Sarajevo. The book is signed by Milena Dragicevic-Sesic and Sanjin Dragojevic and has been published as part of a wider project carried by UNESCO, "Towards a Plural Cultural Identity in a Region of Inter-Community Tension". This manual attempts to unify the general cultural framwork of intercultural communication in the Balkans (myths, prejudices, symbols, etc.), the contemporary referencial conditions (cultural policy, media and information systems, the institutional basis for culture), as well as the practical information and possibilities (methods of animation, cultural networks, project management, fundraising, etc.). For more details contact the UNESCO Division of Cultural Policies and Intercultural Dialogue.
Public vs Private. Cultural Policies and the Art Market in Central and South-Eastern Europe July 2004. This publication documents the conference under the same title, organised by Galerija Skuc in Ljubljana, from 2 to 4 April 2004, as part of the European network project republicart. The goal of the conference was to interrogate the workings of art institutions and the specific structures that support them. The Ljubljana conference approached this topic from two distinct regionally oriented perspectives, focusing on the wider context of the Alpine-Adriatic region (Alpe-Adria) & South-Eastern Europe. The question of the relationship between private and public support for the arts is of particular significance for these two quite different geographical and historical contexts. Various thoughts and ideas expressed at the conference and put down in this publication might hopefully be used as a trigger for further elaborations. In this respect it is a brief reader about the status quo of the art structures and art market in two particular, but overlapping regions. For more details contact Gregor Podnar, at gpodnar@siol.net or visit www.republicart.net.
Cultural Revisionism. Culture between Neo-liberalism and Social Responsability July 2004. The book is written by Maja Breznik and was published by the Peace Institute in Ljubljana. The study is a critical review of European cultural policies. These have earned the epithet "revisionist" because of their revival of the old paradigm of exalted culture intended for social elites. The author analyses the national reports on cultural policies in France, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland, Austria, Italy and Slovenia. The focus of her attention are social distribution of goods and paradigms of "democratisation", "decentralisation" and "liberalisation". The book looks into the recent changes that drew European cultural policies away from the social-democratic ideological framework and towards the neo-liberal model. For more information write to info@mirovni-institut.si or visit www.mirovni-institut.si.
On the Road to a Cultural Policy for Europe July 2004. The latest publication of the European Cultural Foundation argues the case for making culture the basis of European integration, insisting that a strong Europe needs a strong and democratic cultural policy. Co-funded by the European Commission, "On the Road..." has been widely distributed, having first appeared at the conference for the cultural sector, "Sharing Cultures", in Rotterdam in July. The "Policy Recommendations" accompanying this book are available in English, French, Dutch and German. For more details and orders write to communication@eurocult.org.
Cultural Diplomacy: Recommendations and Research July 2004. This publication of the Center for Arts and Culture summarises two years of work at the Center in mutual efforts to heighten awareness about the power and importance of cultural diplomacy in the contemporary world. Following an introduction that sets the stage of cultural diplomacy's role in a foreign policy portfolio, this booklet summarises five research papers the Center commissioned in 2003 to complement the two-part conference series on cultural diplomacy. Resulting from these meetings and research findings, the conclusions that are to be found in a separate section on 'Recommendations.' Consult this paper at the Center for Arts and Culture website.
Cultural Policy at the Grassroots report July 2004. With funding from the Nathan Cummings Foundation, the Center for Arts and Culture is hosting seminars examining cultural policy issues at the local and regional level in the United States. The series convenes leaders of small to mid-sized non-profit and community-based organisations, policy centers, foundations, and local government agencies to explore concerns of key local significance. The new Cultural Policy at the Grassroots report documents the process and the discussion from the 2003 seminar sites in Nashville, Los Angeles, and New Orleans. It also provides information for other communities and regions interested in bringing together the cultural sector to articulate policy needs and affect policy change, giving an interesting and useful American perspective on these issues. Consult this report at the Center for Arts and Culture website.
Update of the Compendium website A new country profile for Serbia and Montenegro has recently been added to the Compendium, so that the online information system on cultural policies in Europe now covers the cultural policy situation in 33 countries. Furthermore, a report of the 3rd Compendium Authors Meeting which took place in March 2004 in Berlin is available for download from the home page of the Compendium at www.culturalpolicies.net.
Update of the European Cultural Networks online directory proposed by BalkanKult BalkanKult (Belgrade) has recently updated its on-line database of European Cultural Networks. The goal of the directory is to support the awareness of the artists, producers, creative people from cultural area and media and professionals from correlated activities about the possibilities of co-operation within European cultural networks in order of building the trust and partnership in presenting mutual goals build on long-term base and solidarity. To browse the database visit www.balkankult.org.
Update of CUPID - database of EU-funded cultural projects EUCLID has recently announced the first update of CUPID, the online searchable database of EU-funded cultural projects. CUPID now includes all Culture 2000 projects to date, as well as other programmes such as Connect (arts and education projects from 1999). Feedback and suggestions about this service are welcome at cupid@euclid.info. Consult the database at www.cupid.culture.info.
Local Government Initiative - Online database of English and Russian speaking experts in public administration, public sector and public policy reform in transition countries This is a free service of OSI-Budapest, Local Government Initiative (LGI). LGI's mission is to support public policy development in countries of Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Therefore OSI has built an online database of English and Russian speaking experts in public administration, public sector and public policy reform in transition countries. The database is designed to promote the participation of Central and Eastern European experts in internationally funded technical assistance projects and to support organisations both within and outside the region in finding the best possible regional experts for their projects. Consult the database at lgi.osi.hu/experts. |
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Editorial note policies for culture e-bulletin is an electronic publication distributed every month in the framework of the Policies for Culture programme. It contains programme news, information about upcoming events, existing opportunities, publications and other relevant information in the field of cultural policy-making for cultural organisations and policy makers in South East Europe. Information for the e-bulletin is collected, edited and distributed by the ECUMEST Association in Bucharest under the coordination of Stefania Ferchedau. We always strive to include the most up-to-date information that is available to us. However, we cannot be held responsible for information, which is outdate or incorrect at the time of publishing. Past issues of the bulletin are available at here.
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