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CULTURAL
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CULTURAL
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Cultural Future of Europe
Europe is increasingly wondering – what is its cultural identity? In this context, there is one problem – how to remain “on one’s
own” and at the same time be active in the globalisation process?
As for cultural issues, Europe faces today an important process of transition. Is the European Union ready for significant changes that should
take place after the enlargement and after the candidate countries become its members?
These and some other questions were addressed at the conference held in Budapest in mid-February under the title Bigger…better…
beautiful? Impact of EU enlargement on cultural opportunities across Europe. It was probably one of the biggest conferences on this
topic held this year. It was attended by over 200 participants – from several Ministries of culture, among them Mr. Vittorio Sgarbi, Italian
Minister for Culture, Mr. Erhard Busek, Special Co-ordinator of the Stability Pact for SEE, to many experts and practitioners in this field.
That the conference was important can be seen from the fact that it was held in the Hungarian Academy of Science and in the National
Parliament building.
The topics that dominated the plenary sessions were related to looking for answers to the present developments in the European cultural
environment, and they may be summarized in several questions: what is the current and future relationship between the possible European
cultural identity and cultural identities of different nations; the relationship between national and transnational; how to overcome stereotypes
and prejudices in Europe – especially in the East – West Europe relationship; do we need new visions of development of united Europe;
what are the best indicatiors of cultural policy; how to measure »structural development«...?
In the course of discussion of these questions, the difference between the representatives of the official institutions on one side, and the
researchers and practitioners, on the other side could have been noticed. While the former were interpreting, from mostly well-known points
of view, the present situation and the on-going processes in cultural field in EU and Europe generally, the latter were more critical of, and
dissatisfied by, the actual situation and the lines of development of European institutions and attitude of the officials towards culture, i.e.
cultural policy in both their own countries and EU. Majority of the participants (officials, researchers and practitioners) recalled the Article
151 of the Amsterdam Treaty (»Article 151« replaced Article 128 of the Maastricht Treaty), but from the different points of view. The issues
connected to the cultural market and cultural industries were left out while the questions of public sector and public funds were predominant.
The topics discussed in the framefork of working groups were more concrete, so the discussions got much closer to the practical problems.
General topic of all working tables was the problem of financing the programmes, projects and activities – both in domains of national cultural
policies and international institutions, the EU and the Council of Europe funds for culture. There is no doubt that in all parts of Europe the
main problem is – funds and everything related to them (projects, applications, prior information access, and subsequent monitoring,
evaluation, dynamics of payment. Especially emphasized were the problems related to the structural funds within the public budgets. At one
of the working tables many critical notions were given to the biggest EU programmes for culture – »Culture 2000«.
At the closing plenary session extremely interesting was the speech of Mr. Erhard Busek, Special Coordinator of the Stability Pact for SEE.
This speech was based on several assumptions: today Europeans live in the pehneomenon once called by A.Malreau »musee imaginaire«;
prejudices are still in evidence both in the West and in East, as well as divisions (where is the centre? Who are bad guys, who are good
guys?); historical assumptions as bad starting points – wrong understanding of history and its instrumentalisation – Greater Serbia, Greater
Germany; language of others may be understood only in its own context; what cutlure does for European development and what role it might
play for further development?
The author of this text underlined in his speech that culture was not included in the Stability Pact documents. Asking more questions that stem
from such ignorant attitude primarily on the part of Western Europe, he emphasized the consequences of the neglected position of culture on
the regional development and broader European integration processes.
Special Coordinator, Mr. Erhard Busek, agreed with these comments and promised that he would do his best in order to change the present
situtation, of course in favor of promoting cultural cooperation in South-East Europe.
Probably the most important content of the future development of cultural environment of Europe was suggested by Mr. Peter Inkei, a
researcher from Budapest, who was also responsible for the Conference's success. He emphasised two processes that deserved all logistic
support: one is social, the other is personal, but they are inter-connected – possibilities for mobility and curiosity! So, if we speak about the
future of culture in Europe, there is more uncertainty than optimism!
Dimitrije Vujadinovic
Published: 2002-03-16
Updated: 2006-05-09
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