About us

The Cultural Relations Platform is an EU-funded project that connects cultural practitioners worldwide for dialogue, exchange and co-operation. It also provides expertise to the European Union (EU) in the field of international cultural relations.

The Platform is implemented by the Goethe-Institut Brussels, in partnership with the European Cultural Foundation; the International Network for Contemporary Performing Arts and the University of Siena.

The Cultural Relations Platform:

• Develops research into the cultural and creative sectors in countries around the world
• Facilitates co-operation and networking between cultural practitioners within and outside the EU including cultural organisations, private foundations and the civil society sector
• Provides advice and expertise to EU institutions and EU delegations all over the world
• Strengthens the capacity of cultural practitioners globally to deliver international cultural relations, through local conferences, workshops and training, and its Global Cultural Relations Programme

By doing so, it builds awareness of the importance of international cultural relations, as a means of sharing knowledge, increasing understanding between different cultures and contributing to economic, human and social development as well as to peace and conflict mitigation.

Background

Over the last 10 years, the European Union has strongly reinforced its commitment to international cultural relations (ICR). On 8 June 2016, the EU High Representative and Vice-President Federica Mogherini and Commissioner for Education and Culture Tibor Navracsics put forward a proposal to develop an  ‘EU Strategy for international cultural relations’. In the same year, our predecessor the Cultural Diplomacy Platform was launched by the Service for Foreign Policy Instruments  of the European Commission in order to support the EU institutions in the implementation of this new strategy. 

In May 2018, the European Commission adopted the New European Agenda for Culture and the European Council recognised international cultural relations as one of its five priorities in its  Work Plan for culture for 2019-2022. 

The Council took a further step in 2019 by adopting Conclusions on an EU strategic approach to international cultural relations and establishing a framework for action. It calls on EU Member States, the Commission, and the European External Action Service to strengthen coordination and strategic guidance on the best way to promote international cultural relations. 

Team

Consortium Members