Sustainable Development

Culture2015 – Declaration on the Inclusion of Culture

Declaration on the Inclusion of Culture in the Sustainable Development Goals

1 May 2014

www.culture2015goal.net

We, the undersigned organisations active in the field of culture and development:

Understanding the concept of development to comprise

  1. human development: the pursuit of the full potential of citizens with physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, psychological and cultural dimensions
  2. social development: the building and sustaining of structures, policies and strategies that facilitate and enhance the pursuit of human development, social cohesion and participatory governance
  3. economic development: the creation of wealth and generation of economic resources that can help drive human and social development

Convinced of the unsustainability of

  1. human development without fundamental rights and freedoms and respect for cultural diversity
  2. social development without social justice
  3. economic development that exacerbates inequality and depletes natural resources

Observing that the cultural dimensions of development are too often ignored to the detriment of the achievement of sustainable development – human, social and economic

Recognizing that

  1. culture – understood as an ensemble of values, traditions, tangible and intangible heritage, religious beliefs, worldviews and the expressions of culture in ways of living – can facilitate the achievement of development goals
  2. development – premised on values, worldviews, ideological beliefs, vision etc – is itself an act of culture that impacts, benevolently or adversely, on the culture of its intended beneficiaries
  3. conflicts rooted in economic and power disparities may be fueled by the exploitation of cultural differences, with such conflicts impacting negatively on development through the destruction of infrastructure, social cohesion and human life and the flight of people with expertise

Believing that

  1. strong cultural organizations and participation can play a key role in preventing conflict by promoting dialogue and a diversity of cultural expressions
  2. development means participation in the cultural life of the community and access to the arts as fundamental human rights asserted in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights
  3. as the fourth dimension of sustainable development, culture is as essential as the economic, social and environmental dimensions; and therefore, the safeguarding of heritage, diversity, creativity and the transmission of knowledge are integral to sustainable development
  4. human development thrives on creativity, creative expression, the arts and cultural heritage as means of emotional and psychological catharsis, intellectual stimulation and the exploration, celebration and transformation of the human condition within given circumstances
  5. social development requires creativity, a diversity of creative expressions, the arts and cultural heritage as means of education, social cohesion, intercultural dialogue and the building of national identity
  6. economic development will benefit from capacity building and investment in all aspects of the value chain of the arts, creative industries, and tangible and intangible cultural heritage, by in turn creating jobs and generating income

Recalling the many United Nations resolutions, international declarations and instruments on culture and sustainable development, as well as the substantial evidence, gathered during the last two decades, of the positive role of culture in development.

Convinced that culture is both a driver and enabler of development and should therefore be integral to Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals based on

  • A vision of the future anchored in human rights and universally accepted values and principles, including those embodied in the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UNESCO’s Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, and the Millennium Declaration;
  • A focus on issues with the greatest impact on sustainable development and a set of concise goals and targets aimed at realizing the priorities of the agenda;
  • A global partnership for development to mobilize implementation and a participatory monitoring framework for tracking progress and mutual accountability mechanisms for all stakeholders.

THEREFORE

Call on governments and policymakers defining the post-2015 UN Development Agenda to ensure that targets and indicators on culture be included as part of the Sustainable Development Goals

in particular (but not limited to) those related to

  • Poverty eradication
  • Education
  • Sustainable cities and human settlements
  • Peaceful and non-violent societies
  • Equality
  • Ecosystems and biodiversity
  • Economic growth

Commit to work together and with international, regional, national and local partners to achieve development policies and strategies that recognize and integrate effectively with the cultural dimensions of development

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

International networks promoting the campaign to include culture in the Sustainable Development Goals

  • IFACCA – International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies
  • Agenda 21 for culture – UCLG’s Committee on Culture
  • IFCCD – International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity
  • Culture Action Europe
  • Arterial Network
  • IMC – International Music Council
  • ICOMOS – International Council on Monuments and Sites

To support this campaign please urgently:

  • Visit and sign this Declaration either as an organisation or as an individual
  • Send this Declaration, or your own message, to your country’s representative at the United Nations (this will probably be via the Minister or Department for Foreign Affairs).  See the list of Permanent Delegates herehttp://www.un.int/protocol/documents/HeadsofMissions.pdf
  • Circulate this Declaration to your networks and spread the word.

Why is this important?

Global expenditure on development over the next 15 years will be defined by the final goal document to be agreed by UN Member States in coming months. If culture is not mentioned, it will be extremely difficult for countries to elaborate policies and provide funds for projects that rely on culture’s role as a driver and an enabler of sustainable development.

‘Culture’ was completely absent from the Millennium Development Goals document http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/ . Don’t let this happen again.

Why is this urgent?

UN’s Open Working Group (OWG) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/owg.html holds working sessions to draft a list of goals, targets and indicators. ulture is again almost absent. The OWG’s draft of the SDGs will be finalized in July 2014.

Please act now and help raise awareness of the UN’s Member States of culture’s vital contribution to sustainable development.

Contact: info@culture2015goal.netThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Cultures of Sustainability in the Age of Climate Crisis

This post comes to you from Cultura21

Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Telemark University College

Bø, May 13.-15. (Tue-Thu), 2014 

The aim of the COST Action IS1007 meeting is to provide new perspectives and practical examples of the transformative role of culture for a sustainable future. The symposium will investigate the many ways of integrating perspectives on cultural change, social learning, experience-based training, innovation and creativity to grasp the role of culture in sustainable development, working with a dynamic concept of culture (culture as process and communication). Today, climate change and climate crisis roams high on the international agenda. At the same time, financial and economic crisis in many parts of Europe may overshadow the climate crisis. How to reconcile, and what role may art and culture represent in this respect?

Dr. Sacha Kagan, of Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Germany, who is on the board of Cultura21 Germany and active on the international level of C21, is also invited to speak.

Find out more about the program.

The meeting is organized by the Department of Culture and Humanities, Telemark University College.

Fee: 110 € covering the scientific program, conference materials, lunches and coffee breaks, conference dinner, and the extra-scientific program.

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Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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Luxembourg: Environmental charter used as kickstarter

This post comes to you from Cultura21

Inspirational: This is what a cultural institution’s environmental charter looks like:

kulturfabrik-env-charter

Reposted from Culture|Futures.

In recent years, the cultural institution and concert-venue Kulturfabrik in Luxembourg has devoted itself to reflecting on sustainable development and a continuous improvement of the institution’s practices for the purpose of minimising its impact on the environment.

A place to find inspiration for your own organisation’s first Environmental Charter, maybe?


» Download Kulturfabrik’s Environmental Charter

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Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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Book Publication: Living Pathways: Meditations on sustainable cultures and cosmologies in Asia

This post comes to you from Cultura21

Globalisation and technological progress have ushered us into a new era of development. Never before has the promise of the ‘Good Life’ in a hedonistic, consumerist utopia, been within reach for so many. Yet a significant portion of humanity is still unable to meet their basic needs.These trends are unsustainable, and beg the question: Where are we heading as a global community… and at what cost?

Bild-7-638x576

In 2005, M. Nadarajah embarked on a journey into the heart of Asia to research culturally imbedded notions of sustainable development. He met with theindigenous communities of the Henanga, Ainu, Lanna, Karen, Kankanaey, Balinese and several others. These cultures reside far from the problems of mainstream development, both physically and spiritually. Their lifestyles incorporate philosophies of interconnectedness; of the sacredness of nature; of the continuity of Past, Present and Future. Rather than offer notions of sustainable development, these life-affirming philosophies pave a pathway towards a deep sustainability.

On this path, we find answers to how we must change as a society in order for us to preserve our world for all future generations. But do we have the collective will to overcome our consumptive habits and start living responsibly? Living Pathways offers its readers a chance to meditate upon these questions. It provides meaningful directions towards the spiritual paths of sustainable communities we often take for granted. Above all, it shows the reader a picture of the world we live in as it could be, if only we choose to make it so.

Further Information.

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Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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New Book–Living Pathways: Meditations on sustainable cultures and cosmologies in Asia

This post comes from Cultura21.

Living Pathways: Meditations on sustainable cultures and cosmologies in Asia

Living-Pathways_Cover-325x362

About the BookGlobalisation and technological progress have ushered us into a new era of development. Never before has the promise of the ‘Good Life’ in a hedonistic, consumerist utopia, been within reach for so many. Yet a significant portion of humanity is still unable to meet their basic needs. These trends are unsustainable, and beg the question: Where are we heading as a global community… and at what cost?

In 2005, M. Nadarajah embarked on a journey into the heart of Asia to research culturally imbedded notions of sustainable development. He met with theindigenous communities of the Henanga, Ainu, Lanna, Karen, Kankanaey, Balinese and several others. These cultures reside far from the problems of mainstream development, both physically and spiritually. Their lifestyles incorporate philosophies of interconnectedness; of the sacredness of nature; of the continuity of Past, Present and Future. Rather than offer notions of sustainable development, these life-affirming philosophies pave a pathway towards a deep sustainability.

On this path, we find answers to how we must change as a society in order for us to preserve our world for all future generations. But do we have the collective will to overcome our consumptive habits and start living responsibly? Living Pathways offers its readers a chance to meditate upon these questions. It provides meaningful directions towards the spiritual paths of sustainable communities we often take for granted. Above all, it shows the reader a picture of the world we live in as it could be, if only we choose to make it so.

About the Author

M. Nadarajah, or ‘Nat’, earned a Ph.D. in Sociology from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, in 1993. His doctoral thesis was published in 1999 as Culture, Gender and Ecology: Beyond Workerism. Nat has spent his life working on the interconnected issues of communication, process development and management, culture, spirituality and sustainability. He has written several books on these issues: Another Malaysia is Possible and Other Essays: Writings on Culture and Politics for a Sustainable World (2004) and his co-edited book Urban Crisis: Culture and the Sustainability of Cities (2007) are noteworthy contributions. He is one of the pioneers of the Global Centre for the Study of Sustainable Futures and Spirituality (GCSSFS, www.gcssfs.org). In 2005, Nat became an Asian Public Intellectual (API) Fellow, sponsored by the Nippon Foundation. This allowed him to embark on a research ‘pilgrimage’ that inspired the meditations presented here in Living Pathways.

For information on how to order the book, visit Areca Books.

Central’s Sustainable Cabaret Wins Green Gown Award

Via News / Julie’s Bicycle.

The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama has won a 2013 Green Gown Award for work on its sustainable pilot production of the musical ‘Cabaret’.

The Green Gown Awards are an annual celebration of sustainability best practice organised by the Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges. The accolade, presented at a ceremony at Derby College on 12th November, recognised Central’s achievement in staging the production using sustainable methods and in considering and measuring the environmental impact and carbon footprint of each stage of production. The initiative, a pilot programme for Central, was undertaken in partnership with Julie’s Bicycle.

Central-Green-Gowns-2013-group-shot

 

Central staff and students involved in ‘Cabaret’ collect the award at the prestigious ceremony in Derby.

Central’s Environment and Safety Manager Susanne Page said ‘As a small, specialist performing arts institution, recognition from outside our niche profession, for an Award that recognises how creativity and sustainability can complement one another, further inspires and energises the continued nurturing of sustainable practices within our theatrical community’.

The judges particularly recognised the project for its role in bringing education for sustainable development to a novel and unusual setting, and they highlighted the scheme’s capacity to shape future practice.

Research undertaken by the students throughout the pilot contributed to the Julie’s Bicycle Sustainable Production Guide, a practical toolkit now available to arts organisations globally via the Julie’s Bicycle website as a guide to reducing their environmental impacts in production and to promote sustainability.  The work will also help to enable effective integration of sustainability into Central’s general curriculum and across future productions, and it has inspired the students involved to carry this knowledge and experience into their professional careers and make a wider, lasting impact on the industry.

Sholeh Johnston, Arts Manager at Julie’s Bicycle, who provided training and mentoring for students involved in the project said ‘The necessary shift towards a sustainable cultural sector is enabled through projects like Central’s Cabaret pilot. The learning and best practice explored by staff and students at Central is now providing practical information and inspiration to other student and professional practitioners. This award celebrates their commitment, and will hopefully galvanize others to get involved with this incredibly exciting movement – one that embodies the best of our sector’s creativity and ingenuity in finding and scaling up more sustainable approaches to theatre making.’

Read more about Central’s production of ‘Cabaret’ in Julie’s Bicycle case study.

Julie’s Bicycle be working with Central on their next ‘green’ production of ‘Greece’ in 2014.

Exposure UNESCO-COAL Adapting to the Anthropocene

PAST_WORK_021-e1384858927261

EXHIBITION ORGANIZED BY UNESCO, THE UNITED NATIONS EDUCATIONAL, SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL ORGANIZATION COAL, COALITION FOR ART AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

Monday, November 25 to Friday, November 30 from 10am to 17:30 ●

Opening Tuesday, November 26, at 18h, in continuation of the roundtable  Thinking Anthropocene from 4:15 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in Room II

On the occasion of the World Day of Philosophy in 2013.

Fourteen projects by contemporary artists involved in environmental issues named in the various editions of the Prix COAL Art & Environment: Ackroyd & Harvey – Thierry Boutonnier and Ralph Mahfoud – Damien Chivialle – Olivier Darné – Nicolas Floc’h – Hanna Husberg, Laura McLean, Nabil Ahmed, Benedetta Panisson, Rosa Barba, Christopher Draeger & Heidrun Holzfeind Marian Tubbs and Drew Denny – Ivana Adaime Makac – Matthew Moore – Liliana Motta – Lucy + Jorge Orta – Zhao Renhui – Anna Katharina Scheidegger – Laurent Tixador – The Migrant Ecologies Project .

Entitled  Adapting to the Anthropocene , this exhibition presented art projects nominated in the various editions of the Prix COAL Art & Environment, which all have in common understanding of the major environmental issues, societal and contemporary, participating in the emergence a new culture of nature and ecology. Each year, through the COAL Art & Environment Award, the association recognizes a contemporary artist involved in environmental issues. The winner is named among the ten selected by a jury of personalities from the world of contemporary art, research, ecology and sustainable development artists, through an international call for projects.

The furnishing of this prize has now become a truly international event that attracts many renowned artists and pioneers in the art of ecology. Each year, the Coal Price Art and Environment is a theme of honor. The 2013 edition on the theme Adaptation received nearly three hundred entries from over 50 countries.

Established in 2010 by the COAL association, COAL Art and Environment Prize of EUR 10 000, is placed under the patronage of the French Ministry of Culture and Communication, Ecology, Sustainable Development and the Energy, and the National Center for Visual Arts. It also receives support from private partners.

For UNESCO, this exhibition provided an exceptional opportunity to promote to the public the ethical principles and responsibilities for climate change adaptation that the Organization seeks to encourage each day through its activities, and in particular through the activities developed by the World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology (COMEST).

These principles and responsibilities that call for humanity to ensure the sustainability of the environment, encourage people to consider biodiversity and ecosystem integrity as the foundation of life on earth.

Beyond the analytical contributions of the social sciences that may help change human behavior, there is no doubt, for UNESCO, that art can not only be suitable emotional way  to foster new attitudes towards nature and the environment, but it can also be their reflection. This is indeed provided by the example of the  COAL association, founded in France in 2008 by professionals of contemporary art, sustainable development and research to foster the emergence of a culture of ecology.

Video credit: The glacier study group, 2013. Institute of critical zoologists

Via Exposure UNESCO-COAL Adapting to the Anthropocene: COAL.

New Ideas Need Old Buildings: Adaptive Reuse and the Performing Arts at WSD2013

old-bldgs_PBH-lobby1Tues 10 Sept 16.30 – 18.00

The Willow Theatre

The appropriation of old buildings for the arts has produced some of the most inspiring and dynamic spaces for live performance in the world.  From Bochum to Brooklyn, old buildings have proven that they make ideal spaces for theatrical innovation. Adaptive reuse has also been recognized as a key component of sustainable development and green building. In this session, we’ll bring together three of the world’s foremost practitioners in adaptive reuse for live performance for a far-reaching discussion about this complex phenomenon.

Who should attend?

Open to all: especially directors, designers and architects.

Price: £6

BUY TICKETS

Key contributors

Katie Oman Moderator –Senior Consultant, Arts Consulting Group.

Jean-Guy Lecat - Director, Studio JGLecat.

Andy Hayles – Managing Partner, Charcoalblue

Jean Nicholson – General Manager, Birmingham Opera Company

New Ideas Need Old Buildings: Adaptive Reuse and the Performing Arts « World Stage Design 2013 World Stage Design 2013.

Art and Ecology?

This post comes to you from Cultura21

LogoMay 17-8 September 2013, Make active choices. Art and ecology : How? , Museum of Modern Art

Freiburg is particularly  involved  in ecological issues; as a “Green city” it  takes part in current discussions about sustainable development. In this dynamic, artists can bring new ideas : by getting involved, infiltrating, polemicising, reinterpreting and offering alternatives.For the exhibition Make active choices. Art and ecology : How? national and international artists are taking part the reflexion. With the active involvement of the visitors, the interaction between man and the environment becomes a concrete experience.

Freiburg theatre is taking part in the project by holding a symposium and an experimental game called “Regiodrom”. In front of the museum itself, urban gardeners work together with interested visitors to create green spaces. Moreover, the documentary “Earth”, directed by Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield, reveals insights into the natural world – providing a starting point and incentive for sustainable activities.

For more information click here

Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

Powered by WPeMatico

Cultura21 Nordic: How can culture lead transformations?

This post comes to you from Cultura21

cultura-21-nordic-300x176In the coming year, Cultura21 Nordic will be working with partners to bring pioneering agents from the Baltic Sea Region together and create a ‘flagship project’ on the issue of culture and sustainability: ‘Baltic Sea Region cooperation with a focus on culture as a part of sustainable development’.

In April 2013, Cultura 21 Nordic and Innogate launched a 16-page report titled ‘Culture and Sustainable Development in the Baltic Sea Region – 8 findings, a number of opportunities and a way forward…’.

The Baltic Sea Region is very rich in networks and cooperation efforts – many of which build on and impact on culture and sustainable development. The mapping and findings reported aim to identify current actors, networks and existing relevant cooperation activities that address specific areas related to culture and sustainability in the Baltic Sea Region.

Commissioned by the Nordic Council of Ministers and based on research interviews with, among many others, cultural institutions such as the Danish Cultural Institute, the Swedish Institute, Intercult, and Heinrich Böll Stiftung, the report is meant to serve as as a point of departure for discussions which, when duly digested, will lead to concrete and feasible activities designed to enable culture to impact more strongly on sustainable development in the Baltic Sea Region.

The report also points at key areas of interest for further cooperation. Perhaps not surprisingly the first finding in the year-long process was that the sphere of cultural collaboration and sustainability is complex, or rather: that there are a number of spheres. Thus the overview presented in the report, according to the authors, is “more of a snapshot than a full picture.”

Lack of knowledge

Summing up, and looking through their findings, the authors conclude it is apparent that the largest obstacle for enabling culture to impact on sustainable development in the Baltic Sea Region seems to be a lack of knowledge about culture-driven practises, tools and cooperation approaches for sustainable development:

“There are many actors that in different ways make an effort to impact on sustainable development through culture(s). However, their efforts remain fragmented – and knowledge of good (and bad) practices are not effectively collected and communicated. There is a need to link efforts more effectively through dialogue and cooperation, to facilitate exchanges of experience and mutual learning. There is also a need to assess current efforts if the key drivers for enabling culture to impact on sustainable development are to be better understood.”

Therefore the report suggests to investigate if one of the existing institutions in the Baltic Sea Region could/should host a knowledge hub on culture and sustainability – a hub that would provide access to practices, tools and networks within the Baltic Sea Region on culture and sustainability.

And if so, the authors ask, should such a hub have one location or rather be made up of a number of competence nodes – say “Culture and Sustainability Smart Labs” at different locations around the Baltic Sea – linked through the main hub?

“The advantage of multiple decentralised competence nodes/labs could be that it would allow local actors to tap more easily into the knowledge resources available in their region and, and through the link to the main hub across the Baltic Sea Region. Both the main competence hub and decentralised labs/nodes could be hosted by existing organisations.”

Slide presentation

In his presentation at the conference ‘Culture and Collaboration in the South East Baltic Region’ in Kaliningrad in June 2013, director Oleg Kofoed started out with asking the basic question: “How can culture lead transformations?”Oleg Kofoed’s 15-slide presentation can been seen onslideshare.net

Culture provides a framework

The report suggests an answer this question — how culture can lead transformations. For instance, it states that:

“Culture is of great importance to economically, socially and environmentally sustainable development. Culture is important not least because culture is a bond that brings people of a community (town, city, country or region) together and because it provides a framework that shapes people’s standards and behaviour. In so doing, culture impacts in multiple ways on development in most areas of society. For example culture impacts significantly on business opportunities, job creation, integration, health, education, technologies, and creativity – and in so doing culture impacts on sustainable development. This overall role of culture seems to be generally accepted, in particular – and not surprisingly – among stakeholders in the cultural sector/sphere but also increasingly so also across sectors/spheres.”

The report mentions that at recent COP meetings, cultural aspects of sustainability have grown in importance:

“In 2010 the UNESCO partner United Cities and Local Governments declared culture “The Fourth Pillar of Sustainability”. This was followed in 2012 by the Rio+20 UN conference, which declared: “We acknowledge the diversity of the world and recognize that all cultures and civilisations contribute to the enrichment of humankind and the protection of the Earth’s life support system. We emphasize the importance of culture for sustainable development. We call for a holistic approach to sustainable development which will guide humanity to live in harmony with nature.”

The logic is that by including culture in sustainability one achieves a more complete development model which – it is argued – better embraces the complexity of societies and highlights the importance of culture as a driver of societal change and development.” (…)

“The recently updated Action Plan for the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region does emphasise the importance of culture to sustainable development, as part of a dedicated Priority Area for Culture and associated cooperation activities. The Nordic Council of Ministers is committed to taking responsibility for advancing regional cooperation under the Priority Area for Culture – including by leading the Flagship Project ‘Baltic Sea Region cooperation with a focus on culture as a part of sustainable development’.

This paper is a first effort under this flagship project. It is an attempt to map stakeholders and activities in the field of culture and sustainability. It is also a first effort to engage stakeholders in a new region-wide dialogue aiming at identifying opportunities for synergies in current efforts, and to propose practical steps for further cooperation in the field of culture and sustainability. The longer-term objective of the Nordic Council of Ministers is to take the first steps – along with partners from around the Baltic Sea – towards systematically developing knowledge and capacities in the Baltic Sea Region on ways in which culture contributes, and can contribute more, to sustainable development – whether be it economically, socially and/or environmentally sustainable development.”

Reposted from Culture/ futures

Cultura21 is a transversal, translocal network, constituted of an international level grounded in several Cultura21 organizations around the world.

Cultura21′s international network, launched in April 2007, offers the online and offline platform for exchanges and mutual learning among its members.

The activities of Cultura21 at the international level are coordinated by a team representing the different Cultura21 organizations worldwide, and currently constituted of:

– Sacha Kagan (based in Lüneburg, Germany) and Rana Öztürk (based in Berlin, Germany)
– Oleg Koefoed and Kajsa Paludan (both based in Copenhagen, Denmark)
– Hans Dieleman (based in Mexico-City, Mexico)
– Francesca Cozzolino and David Knaute (both based in Paris, France)

Cultura21 is not only an informal network. Its strength and vitality relies upon the activities of several organizations around the world which are sharing the vision and mission of Cultura21

Go to Cultura21

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