In the final session on the 30th September, moderated by Odile Quintin, Director General for Education and Culture, we were introduced to three rapporteurs of the conference. Each rapporteur had been asked to respond to certain themes running through the conference. Chris Torch, Artistic Director of Intercult, has kindly shared his report with us, and you, reflecting on the theme Cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue.

Commitment.

Mrs. Adelsohn Liljeroth, the Swedish Minister for Culture, launched her opening speech with a plea for intercultural action. The national proposition for culture that her Ministry delivered recently included one completely new long-term objective: to increase international and intercultural exchange and collaboration. This is a clear example of how a Member State can take the lead into new territory and potentially effect change by other nations.

Complementary initiatives at all levels – the local, the regional, the national and the European – must be encouraged and the interplay between them must be intensified.

Commitment.

The presence of Mrs. Pack and Mr. Pöttering from the European Parliament and, of course, Commissioner Figel gave a clear sign of the sincerity of the Commission and the EP in committing to an ongoing intercultural agenda.

Commitment.

The presence and participation, in one of the workshops I followed, of Mr. Morin from DG Employment and Social Affairs (as well as representatives from various DGs in the two threads that Steve and Bernard will report on later) underlined the increasing sensitivity to the cultural factor by other sectors. This is hopeful and provides an incentive for artists and operators with social, environmental and educational concerns to actively seek out partnership in return.

Disappointment.

I did not once, during the Opening Session, hear a reference to migration as a major factor in the transformation of our cultural landscape. The diversity of the European urban centers was not dealt with directly. This is either naïve or an intentional avoidance of a potentially uncomfortable theme. Europe is enriched by the diversity of its citizens, including those who were not born here. Concrete preventative action must be taken to reduce the tensions caused by the flow of peoples. Cultural action is essential in this work.

Disappointment.

As the Platform for Intercultural Europe, one of the structured dialogue partners with the DG Education and Culture, consistently points out, there is no formal Partner to receive recommendations from our sector. No OMC working group on interculture is set up. And I heard none of our speakers propose it. This is a missed opportunity to strengthen one of the tools that DGEAC has developed, now, when a broad cross-section of cultural, social, educational and human rights activists have been gathered to share their knowledge.

Concrete recommendations

made during the three parallel workshops, 29 september 2009

I choose in my final report not to mention names, mostly because I worry that I will forget someone or mispronounce them terribly. But here are some conclusions drawn from the three workshops during yesterdays session, with the competent support of the moderators and also colleagues from DGEAC and the Platform for Intercultural Europe.

Workshop A: Mobility of artists and other culture professionals

We received a brilliant and practical analysis of the obstacles to mobility regarding visas, passports, taxes and the lacking transparency of regulations. Harmonizing and modernizing the movement of artists across EU and neighboring countries borders is a crucial step. The suggestions have been on the table for some time now. It is time to act more concretely to implement them.

Imbalances that exist between regions and resource must be countered. We need to increase contact with other regions and other continents, not reduce it.

Continuity and long-term solutions in mobility schemes must be secured. “One off” initiatives are not especially useful.

The importance of access for non-EU nationals was underlined. Again - formal obstacles must be eliminated or greatly reduced with a special sensitivity to artists and cultural operators.

Workshop B: Education and Training

Education and Culture are equally important and closely intertwined. Creativity is the point of contact. Synergies between the two must be encouraged and resourced.

Special focus should be given to the training of teachers, as the key links between educational agendas and creative stimulation of students.

Emphasis and attention should be given to non-formal and informal educational initiatives, where the cooperation between school, community and family is developed. Here the European added value is obvious and especially fruitful.

Primary schools are essential arenas and points of contact. The strongest intercultural competences are formed during the first years of public education.

The cultivation of creativity must be regarded as a necessity for social inclusion and future economic development. This creates natural alliances with other EU sectors, bringing other competencies onto the playing field.

Evaluation methods must be built into every initiative and new measurement tools must be created. Politicians and their constituencies demand concrete evidence. This will strengthen our base for constructive advocacy for Culture and the Arts.

A key to future creative generations is the development of “media literacy”, for students and teachers alike. There is a knowledge gap between teachers and children that must be bridged at the same time as we instill critical thinking in an information-driven society.

There was no specific discussion about intercultural learning approaches. This is a missed opportunity at a time when new approaches are required due to increased diversity in our cities and neighborhoods.

Workshop C: Access to Culture; Participation; Youth

We must stop delivering the dominant culture and allow ourselves to be mutually transformed in encounters with other cultures and nations. The multiplicity of identities is both an individual and a collective strength.

We must stop perceiving and countering “the digital threat” – instead regarding the broad distribution of communication technology as an opportunity.

Working together and across professional areas and disciplines is crucial. Creating a grid of support and action between artists, social workers, teachers and citizens themselves. This is transversality at a community level.

There is a need for greater concentration on audience development schemes and the exchange of approaches between different operators in different contexts. This is the foundation of inclusion.

A few general comments

picked up during these intense two days, 29-30 september 2009

As a colleague from Culture Action Europe, the advocacy network for European cultural politics, put it the other day: "It is time to put our money where are hearts are...".

The European project, as imagined in its most complementary and constructive form, has been stumbling for far too long. Without serious engagement in cultural action - as a sustainable alternative to introversion, populism and even military action – there will be no European project.

Without intense mobility of artists and ideas, there will be no messages of peace across borders.

Without strategies for education and life-long learning that are intercultural in the true meaning – mutual transformation – there will be no sharing of knowledge across borders.

Without intercultural meeting places where peoples, cultures, generations and disciplines gather and surprise one another, there will be no common values to defend.

Without planning cultural exchange into the strategies of every aspect, every DG, every endeavor of the EU, there will be no consensus or mutual aid or solidarity between nations.

When the European project is reduced to administrating things rather than inter-cultivating them, it will lose its sustainability and the enthusiasm of European citizens.

Less than 0.5% of the total EU budget is not enough to do this job.

In 2009 and far beyond, we need to incite the innovative capacity of an entire continent, if we to face challenges we don’t even know yet exist and can hardly imagine.

It is, in fact, time to put our money where our hearts are. And our hearts back into our work.

Chris Torch
artistic director – Intercult (Sweden)
vice-president – Culture Action Europe
steering group member – Platform For Intercultural Europe