UCLG CULTURE SUMMIT 2021 IN IZMIR - Culture: Shaping the Future

When | 10 June 2021, 14.30 – 16.30 CEST
Where | Please click here to register.
Languages | Interpretation in English, Turkish, French and Spanish.

BACKGROUND
The world has changed. Humanity is looking for a new balance where culture must be central in
societies that care for all. The pandemic of Covid-19 has shown the profound need for culture:
people have turned to culture to reinforce the sense of belonging in communities and cities,
inventing new forms of participation, recognizing what brings us together and creating new
meaning and solidarity. The pandemic has also shown the interrelation among cultural policies
and policies related to education, gender equity, health, inequalities, urban planning, public
spaces and innovation. Last, but not least, the crisis has made evident that the systems of
protection of cultural workers are precarious and need to improve all around the world.
This is why the title of the UCLG Culture Summit is Culture: Shaping The Future.

A SUMMIT ON CULTURE
The Summit will provide examples of concrete policies, programmes and projects developed
by cities during the COVID-19 crisis and for the recovery. We will discuss challenges, obstacles,
dreams, ideas and possible solutions. The Summit is informed by global Agendas, including:

- The UCLG Presidential Decalogue, that identifies culture as a main component in the recovery.

- The announcement of a new UCLG Pact for the Future of Humanity: for People, for
the Planet, for the Government, to be approved in 2022. This Pact will be “powered by
solidarity, equality, culture, and accountable institutions that leave no-one and no place
behind”. See also the UCLG video message on the “Pact for the Future”, and the video
“Culture is the antidote for the secondary effects of the current, and all, crisis”).

- The global and regional initiatives on the place of culture in the recovery, and beyond.

The Summit will reinforce the messages about the role culture plays in sustainable
development at the local, national and global level, especially in the UN 2030 Agenda and the
Sustainable Development Goals. The place of culture in development needs to be upgraded.
Actors promoting the cultural dimension of development should sit at the main table of the
future of humanity.

The Summit will take place on 9-11 September 2021 in Izmir and online.

Izmir, the pearl of the Mediterranean, the intersection point of ancient cultures, the host of
UCLG Culture Summit 2021, awaits you with all its colours. The cultural vision of the city
involves developing trans-national relations by transforming the city into an effective global
node, celebrating diversity, promoting arts, design and innovation, protecting the heritage and
supporting ecological lifestyle, alternative production, distribution and organization models.

THE LAUNCH OF THE SUMMIT
The Launch of the Summit takes place on 10 June 2021, from 14.30 to 16.30 CEST.
The Launch includes an institutional welcome, a conversation on the cultural impact of Covid-19
and key messages from actors of Izmir and UCLG. The Launch will also explain the main topics
of the Summit.
You can already read the Background Document and visit the website of the Summit to prepare
the Launch.

You can access the detailed program from the pdf document below.