UCLG Committee on Culture announces the results of the questionnaire on the new A21C

UCLG Committee on Culture

During the process of updating the Agenda 21 for culture, the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Committee on Culture launched an online consultation questionnaire in March 2014. Over the course of almost five months, up until 31 July 2014, the questionnaire received 255 responses, of which 142 can be considered complete.

The document “Agenda 21 for culture, today and tomorrow: questionnaire results” offers a summary of the contributions and includes an analysis of the responses received, which will be considered, together with the rest of ideas collected throughout 2013 and 2014, in light of the preparation of the new Agenda 21 for culture, to be presented in Bilbao in March 2015.
 

The main conclusions of the reports are: 

  • Most people who responded to the consultation knew about the Agenda 21 for culture. From the contributions received, a broad, complex view of the implications of the relationship between culture and sustainable development emerges: recognition of the space of culture, its interrelationships with numerous other dimensions, and contribution of guidance for models of policies and management in this area.
  • Those who knew about the activities carried out by the UCLG Committee on Culture value the publication and translation of documents (Agenda 21 for culture, as well as declarations and thematic reports) and advocacy work in particular.
  • In general, there is a consensus that the main contribution of the Agenda 21 for culture is raising awareness about the link between culture and sustainable development, from a local to an international level (transversality of culture, intrinsic values of culture, etc.).
  • A large majority of people who responded agree on the need to revise the Agenda 21 for culture; to update it, incorporate new challenges, and give it a more practical orientation.
  • There are various global and local trends that the new Agenda 21 for culture should reflect: globalization, digitalization, the effects of the market on culture, social inequalities, the emergence of “free” knowledge and culture (commons), distance of the population to traditional cultural institutions, new spaces for creativity, etc.
  • The new Agenda 21 for culture should be based on values similar to those which inspired it in 2004, while emphasizing the importance of aspects such as constructing collective citizen competences, measuring impact and the relevance of culture in political, social and environmental terms.
  • In line with the main deficiencies detected in the previous period, the questionnaire respondents request that in the next two-year period, the UCLG Committee on Culture reinforce the practical dimension of the Agenda 21 for culture (through resources including training, technical assistance and assessment), and continue with advocacy work and raising awareness on culture and sustainable development.

Save the dates in your diary:

The Culture Summit hosted by the City of Bilbao (Basque Country, Spain), 18-20 March 2015. The Summit will feature the presentation of the new Agenda 21 for culture, the good practices of Agenda 21 for culture, the best projects from the first edition of the “International Award UCLG - Mexico City – Culture 21”, and the results of the Pilot Cities programme.

Source: UCLG Committee on Culture