Sarah Gardner, Executive Director of IFACCA, the global network of arts councils and ministries of culture, unveiled on 3 October the prototype of www.worldcp.org, a new international database of cultural policies and trends. With its country-specific profiles of cultural policies and its focus on cultural diversity, WorldCP has been modelled on the Council of Europe / ERICarts Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe.At the launch , the Compendium community of practice was represented by Ritva Mitchell (ERICarts Institute / Cupore). Compendium webmaster Joerg Torkler has been one of the architects in the construction of the new site.

Over the last years, Compendium coverage of European cultural policies and trends has been enhanced and linked with broader global challenges and achievements. New content on issues such as "Cultural Rights & Ethics" or "Intercultural Dialogue" was introduced and international monitoring needs of the users in governments and NGOs, e.g. as concerns the 2005 UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, are now being addressed. As a result, the number of Compendium users from outside of Europe increased and new international partnerships or research projects emerged. In 2008, an "OPEN Compendium" Initiative was launched in Baku (Azerbaijan) by the authors and editors of the information system, some of which started to advise colleagues around the world in preparing new country profiles, e.g. in the Arab countries, Australia, Asia and USA.

This move towards a global outreach of the Compendium received the backing of the Culture Committee and Secretariat of the Council of Europe and meets the aim of CultureWatch Europe to increase the visibility and share European experiences and achievements in the field of the governance of culture. The feasibility of this global initiative was further discussed by experts at conferences around the world. Based on these experiences, different stakeholders agreed at a meeting in Brussels, September 2010, that IFACCA should take a lead in organising what is now called "WorldCP". A close cooperation with partners such as the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and national ministries is being organised and the adoption of a "federal structure" secures the autonomy of regional sites like the Compendium of Cultural Policies and Trends in Europe.

Source: http://www.culturalpolicies.net/web/index.php