The EU's cultural and creative sectors are not yet sufficiently integrated into the bloc's strategic policymaking, says Isabelle De Voldere, co-author of a new report presented to the European Parliament. These sectors have immense potential to drive positive social change through the EU's transformation agenda, she argues. Isabelle De Voldere spoke to Creatives Unite about the state of CCSIs at the start of the new legislature in the European Parliament.
By Matthaios TsimitakisOn Wednesday, 4 September, Isabelle De Voldere, together with co-authors Sylvia Amann and Heritiana Ranaivoson, presented the study “EU culture and creative sectors' policy: overview and future perspectives” to the CULT Committee of the European Parliament. During the presentation, the authors argued that the cultural and creative sectors (CCS) are not yet adequately integrated into the EU strategic agendas.
On 21 September 2023, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen outlined in a letter the priorities for the new Commissioner for Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture, and Sport. The new commissioner, Glenn Micallef, will organise a youth policy dialogue and develop an anti-cyberbullying plan. He is also tasked with creating an intergenerational fairness strategy for EU policymaking.
In conjunction with these developments, the European Commission announced its Annual Work Programme for Creative Europe in 2024. The programme will receive a budget of over €320 million, focussing on supporting sectors recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic and addressing challenges posed by the war in Ukraine.
By unlocking the CCS's full potential, the EU can harness the power of storytelling, artistic expression, and cross-sectoral collaboration to drive positive societal change, says co-author of the report, Isabelle De Voldere. The “EU Culture and Creative Sectors' Policy: Overview and Future Perspectives” report recommends 33 policy actions to address structural deficits, provide safe spaces for cultural interaction, and enhance cooperative governance “to strategically align the CCS with the Union's wider transformation agenda.”
These include investing in democratic culture and media institutions, enabling better international cooperation in and with the CCS. Addressing access barriers to physical, digital, and hybrid spaces for artistic creation and fostering multilevel governance with strategic partners outside the EU institutions are some proposals outlined in the report. She spoke to Creatives Unite about this potential and the discussions opening in the sector in the new legislature.
CU: The new European Commission President von der Leyen has outlined a strategic direction for culture in her recent letter to the new commissioner, Glenn Micallef. How do you read this in terms of the priorities and approach being signalled?
The recognition of the transversal value of culture and the emphasis on issues like working conditions in the cultural and creative sectors are positive elements. However, it lacks a clear, comprehensive strategic vision for culture and the creative sectors. The last EU strategic agenda for culture dates back to 2018, so an update is sorely needed to reflect the evolving realities of the sector.
The letter talks about unlocking the competitiveness potential of the cultural and creative industries, but the transformative, transversal potential of culture in European society seems to be underemphasised. Key areas like the role of culture in the green and just transition or health and wellbeing are not addressed in the letter. There is growing evidence about the value of the cultural and creative sectors in those areas and wider innovation ecosystems.
There is also uncertainty around the future of dedicated funding programs like Creative Europe. Whereas the letter mentions other EU funding programs, it doesn't mention Creative Europe. It's unclear at this stage if sufficient investment and support for the cultural and creative sectors will be maintained. Even though we talk a lot about the transversal role of culture in our study for the CULT Committee and better integrating the cultural and creative sectors in other funding programs, it remains very important to also have a strong dedicated funding programme. Of course, it is still early, so we will have to wait and see.
CU: The Commission presented the idea of a “cultural compass”—what is your take on this concept and its potential implications?
The “cultural compass” concept is quite vague at this stage. Without more clarity on its meaning and intended purpose, it's difficult to assess its potential value. However, I see a positive possibility if it is aimed at developing a truly strategic, cross-cutting vision for culture's role in the European project. Importantly, any such strategic exercise could draw upon the insights and recommendations provided in our recent study presented to the European Parliament. Actively incorporating the perspectives of experts and sector representatives will be crucial to ensuring the cultural compass points in the right direction.
CU: Do the guidelines or policy recommendations you provided meet the expectations and address the key concerns of the European Parliament? Or were there differences between your recommendations and their priorities?
The main areas of focus that came up in the questions during our presentation to the CULT committee were centred around media pluralism and the challenges related to disinformation and protecting democracy. These are major ongoing issues within Europe that require continued attention and EU action.
The dominance of large US-based tech platforms in distributing and providing access to cultural content was another area of concern raised during the presentation, and that we address in the study.
In the study, we discuss the relevant regulatory initiatives taken in the past period, though more follow-up and scrutiny are needed as these are still relatively new measures. Ongoing monitoring, evaluation, and refinement of the regulatory framework will be critical, as these are complex, evolving issues.
Overall, I believe our recommendations address the concerns expressed during the meeting at the European Parliament. At the same time, we hope that our study will not only inspire the CULT committee to further tackle major challenges ahead but will also inspire them to see opportunities that lie ahead. These can be boosted when adequately supported by EU CCS policies.
CU: Do you think the discussion and focus on heritage and preservation issues should take up a larger portion of the overall agenda moving forward? Or do you anticipate that AI-related topics and challenges may tend to overshadow or reprioritise discussions about things like greening the cultural and creative industries?
I believe the attention and priority given to heritage-related issues in European policy has grown significantly in recent years. The heritage networks and research community have done a great job of organising themselves in a more structured way to effectively convey their priorities to policymakers.
When it comes to the intense policy discussions about AI regulation, indeed, there is a risk that this could potentially overshadow or deprioritize attention to other important issues like environmental sustainability for the cultural and creative industries. However, I don't believe that the AI focus will take over the agenda of the CULT Committee or DG EAC. I expect they will continue to maintain a balanced, comprehensive approach.
CU: Following the CULT committee, it seemed to me that new divisions emerge among political groups as they have different priorities. What are the key tensions and challenges that European policymakers will need to navigate in trying to develop a coherent, Europe-wide approach?
The key recommendations from our work centre around governance and the need for a multi-level, cross-policy domain approach. Even though the CULT Committee may not have direct competence in specific legislative acts like the AI Act or Digital Markets Act, their role is invaluable for the cultural and creative sectors. Committee members can play a proactive role by asking critical questions of their colleagues in other responsible committees where these tech-related policy domains are being actively shaped. This is a critical responsibility, as we cannot expect other policy domains to automatically account for these sectoral concerns.
CU: Can you give us a sense of the key cultural and creative sector-focused priorities and recommendations you think the CULT Committee could be advocating for based on the dynamics you witnessed?
On the important issue of working conditions in the cultural and creative sectors, the Commission has provided some responses. It is crucial that the CULT Committee closely monitors and follows up on the Commission's response, as well as on its promise to develop a new strategic agenda for culture.
The core message is that the CULT Committee needs to maintain a very active, engaged, and vigilant role. The Committee should follow up with the Commission, relevant committees in the European Parliament, and other stakeholders on these key policy and funding issues impacting the cultural sector. At the same time, they should be working towards a more coherent EU CCS policy. Sustained parliamentary scrutiny and pressure will be essential to ensuring that actions are fully aligned with the sector's evolving needs.
— The study “EU culture and creative sectors’ policy: overview and future perspectives” was conducted by IDEA Consult (Isabelle De Voldere, Eva De Smedt, Tille Peters), in close collaboration with researchers from imec-VUB-SMIT (Heritiana Ranaivoson and Dr Marlen Komorowski), KULeuven-CiTiP (Aleksandra Kuczerawy and Jozefien Vanherpe) and policy experts Sylvia Amann and Joost Heinsius.
—Isabelle De Voldere is a senior adviser at IDEA Consult, where she has worked on issues related to the economics of cultural and creative sectors for over a decade. She has collaborated on and managed numerous research and consultancy projects for actors such as the European Commission, regional governments, sector federations, and policy institutes.
— Image: Courtesy of Isabelle De Voldere
