The UCLG World Council in Rabat in October 2013 confirmed the importance of culture as a key component of sustainable development and a consequent priority for cities and local and regional governments committing to renew the Agenda 21 for culture. Since its inception, culture has been at the heart of UCLG’s agenda, as can be demonstrated by the adoption of the Agenda 21 for culture (May 2004), the Policy Statement “Culture: Fourth Pillar of Sustainable Development” (November 2010) and the inclusion of culture in UCLG’s advocacy efforts related to the Post-2015 Agenda, including the activities of the Global Taskforce.
The process to elaborate the new Agenda 21 for culture was initiated by the Committee on Culture in 2013 through debates in Lille-Métropole, Buenos Aires and Rabat, and will continue in 2014, with meetings, seminars, articles, questionnaires and visits to pilot cities. The process will conclude with a major event: a “UCLG Culture Summit”.
The UCLG Culture Summit will be hosted by the City of Bilbao (Basque Country, Spain) on 18-20 March 2015, and will feature the presentation of a new document on culture and local sustainable development which (a) builds on the success of the Agenda 21 for culture, (b) updates its recommendations, with a clearer orientation towards the implementation of policies, and (c) aims to promote the sharing of knowledge and networking, with a selection of good practices and the promotion of exchanges, peer-reviews and expertise.
The Summit is designed to promote mutual and hands-on learning as well as long-term partnerships among cities and local and regional governments that recognize the important place of culture in sustainable development and are willing to implement the new Agenda 21 for culture. The UCLG Culture Summit is also an important opportunity and a timely moment to connect with other stakeholders: the organizations and networks that are advocating for the place of culture in the global campaign on the UN Post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals, that is, the#culture2015goal campaign. The UCLG Culture Summit will be a peer-learning event: the good practices of Agenda 21 for culture will be presented, the best projects of the first edition of the “International Award UCLG - Mexico City – Culture 21” will be disseminated and the results of the Pilot Cities programme will be showcased. Logistical information will be sent to you by the end of October 2014.
Please save the dates of the Culture Summit in your diary: 18-20 March 2015
In the meantime, please note that the annual meeting of the UCLG Committee on Culture will take place in Buenos Aires (Argentina) from 29 September to 2 October 2014. This is a very important meeting because participants will define the contents and the implementation mechanisms of the new Agenda 21 for culture. We hope for a broad participation from all our members and partners. Please download the agenda and the registration form.
Should you require any additional information, do not hesitate to contact the Secretariat of the Committee: [email protected].
Source : UCLG - United Cities and Local Governments <[email protected]>