Advocacy

As advocates for an inclusive, democratic, open and creative Europe, ECF acts as a bridge between policy makers and ‘those in the field’.

ECF puts culture at the centre of the European political project and facilitates cultural policy development on all levels. By consistently linking practice to policy, we ensure that our activities not only act as catalysts for artistic and cultural expression, but also have a concrete impact on European cultural policies and strategies, most notably on the EU level.

We advocate on many levels and with many partners to:

• support research
• bridge the divide between EU and its neighbouring countries
• involve different voices in the policy discourse
• promote intercultural action
• inspire reflection

Supporting research

In 2004, ECF and the Riksbankens Jubileumfond launched the Cultural Policy Research Award. The award is now in its sixth year and, developed in partnership with ENCATC, it forms a central part of ECF’s advocacy work for cultural policy researchers. ECF and partners also focused on developing offline and online spaces for researchers to collaborate, connect and share knowledge: Young Cultural Policy Researchers Forum and a digital forum. These projects make up a package of support to strengthen the cultural research community and increase the impact of policy work.

Cultural Policy Research Award (CPRA)
The Cultural Policy Research Award honours young and talented researchers in the field of the applied and comparative cultural policy. The initiative is currently developed in cooperation with the European Network of Cultural Administration Training Centres (ENCATC) and is guided by an international jury. The aim of the award is to encourage cultural policy researchers to take a step from evaluative to comparative applied research, that can inform policymaking and benefit practitioners active in the field.

Previous CPRA winners:
2009 Davide Ponzini
2008 Sophia Labadi
2007 Amanda Brandellero
2006 Marcello Marciani
2005 Jaka Primorac
2004 Nina Obuljen
The publications of the winners are available in our publication section.

Young Cultural Policy Researchers Forum
The Young Cultural Policy Researchers Forum offers young researchers the possibility to meet and discuss research topics and methodologies, share and develop ideas, learn from each other and exchange with senior researchers in cultural policy. The participants are from broad geographic backgrounds needing support in accessing the “next level” in the policy arena. The forum is free to attend and requests can be made via the ENCATC website. The forthcoming meeting in Brussels will also announce the new CPRA winner on 7 October 2010.

Digital space – Young Researchers Forum
The Young Cultural Policy Researchers Forum also has an online space where the young cultural policy researchers can meet, share knowledge, find information and collaborate. The Young Researchers Forum is hosted by LabforCulture and moderated by Dr. Lidia Varbanova. The space offers a unique interactive opportunity for young cultural policy researchers to network, post and participate in high quality discussions with eminent researchers and professionals: extending researchers networks online. Go here to join the forum. 

Advocating with neighbouring countries

Since the European Union recently committed to make culture a vital part of its external affairs, we are shifting our activities to now specifically advocate for improved EU cooperation with neighbouring countries. In particular, our European Neighbourhood programme aims to strengthen civil society in countries to the south and east of Europe, and influence how decisions are made, especially in regards to cultural policymaking. We work to get everyone who has a stake in the cultural life of their towns, countries and regions talking and working together.

We focus on three different regions, each with specific cultural development objectives:  

Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia) and Turkey:

• Develop regional hubs where cultural experience and practice influence policymaking on local, national, regional and European levels.
• Provide support with region-specific tools such as the Balkan Incentive Fund for Culture grants scheme. 

Eastern Partnership countries (Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia):

• Provide targeted capacity-building initiatives, matched with ECF institutional and individual grants.
• Empower and engage cultural actors of change through advocacy platforms that will increase their access not only to decision makers at local and national levels, but also EU institutions, policymakers and funding programmes.

Euro-Mediterranean region:

•  Inform future EU policy decisions and cultural strategies by supporting cultural policy research and development in the region.
• Connect people in the region with knowledge related to current EU reflection and policy development.

Supporting creative voices

We contribute to the digital dimension of creativity and advocacy through our Youth and Media programme and our online platforms, such as LabforCulture. With the advancement of technology and its use by younger generations, online communication will play an increasingly significant role in advocacy in the coming years. ECF will remain at the front of these developments.

Our annual Routes Award celebrates pioneers in the field of cultural diversity. This award not only highlights their achievements, but also helps us to directly inspire and influence policymakers. Presented in Brussels, the award goes to outstanding artists, activists and thinkers who have been nominated by our extensive network. The 2009 Routes winners were the dramaturge Borka Pavicevic who founded Belgrade’s Centre for Cultural Decontamination and the experimental theatre-maker Stefan Kaegi.

Working with partners for intercultural action

We want to keep Intercultural Dialogue an intrinsic part of the EU Culture Programme and also see it included as part of the standard process of all EU policymaking. With our partners Culture Action Europe, we co-founded the Platform for Intercultural Europe which works for policies that reflect Europe’s cultural diversity and increased dialogue between people of different backgrounds. The Platform has more than 400 organisations as members and has become central in the dialogue between European institutions and civil society. By talking directly with the European Commission, we help ensure that the EU’s groundbreaking European Agenda for Culture is effective and gets the commitment it deserves from politicians and culture professionals alike.

Inspiring reflection

New visions and methods feed our overall approach of ‘reflecting, analysing, recommending, lobbying and acting'. We engage expert advice to back the long-term development of our programmes, and help maintain the link between our actions and our advocacy objectives. We are always seeking  to influence the EU to incorporate culture more substantially and systematically in its policies and programmes. For example, ECF with Culture Action Europe will take part in the mid-point review of the EU’s Culture Programme 2007-2013. This is the main EU instrument for supporting artistic and cultural cooperation projects. We will push to make the programme more efficient and target-oriented, so that when its successor programme comes into force in 2014 it will be primed for action.