Probably the first cultural observatory, it was established in 1989 by the French Ministry of Culture, the University Pierre Mendès France in Grenoble, the Institut de Sciences Politiques de Grenoble (IEP) and the Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). It aims to explore interactions between social, cultural and artistic trends at a local, national, European and international level, and public policies within their local dimension.

The international section of its website that makes account of their European-wide research projects, is also available in English and Spanish.