For the future: Make cultural relations count in a post-crisis global society

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a crushing effect on the work of inter­national cultural relations. Artists and organisations, including our members, are severely affected by the abrupt discontinuation of their activities, which rely so heavily on people coming together to collaborate across borders. How can we en­sure that, after this crisis, cultural relations continue to bring trust and understanding between the people of Europe and the wider world?

COVID-19 effects on cultural relations work
EUNIC has documented and analysed the impact of the crisis of its members. The majority of them has suffered financial loss and are not eligible to apply for emergency government funding. This crisis will only be resolved, the global cultural sector will only recover, and international relations will only be restored if peoples of the world are enabled to meet and collaborate freely with one another.

The importance of international cultural relations
Cultural relations generate a spirit of dialogue and global solidarity. They strengthen the idea of a shared Europe, increasing its self-reflection towards a common awareness of joint values and are key in creating trust and understanding and a more peaceful world by bringing people together on a global scale. Culture creates jobs and competitiveness and can play an important role in the global economic recovery.

Ways forward
To continue peace building, reaching out to people worldwide through culture is needed. Local cultural sectors worldwide require support. We must adapt our way of working in the digital realm, finding new, hy­brid ways of doing cultural relations beyond the crisis.

What we must do now
As culture has proven to be essential in sustaining our societies in moments of crisis, culture must be protected from budget cuts in the post-crisis financial frameworks and EU budgets for culture must be substantially increased.

Read the full report