2016 ENCATC Congress - Cultural Management Education in Risk Societies - Towards a Paradigm and Policy Shift?!
Valencia, Spain"Cultural Management Education in Risk Societies - Towards a Paradigm and Policy Shift?!”
The 24th ENCATC Annual Conference "Cultural Management Education in
Risk Societies - Towards a Paradigm and Policy Shift?!”
took place in Valencia, Spain, from 5-7 October 2016. This major international event brought
together more than 160 academics, researchers, professionals from the
cultural sector, policy makers, artists, students and media from over 30
countries to debate about the new paradigm and policy shift needed on
cultural management and policy to face today’s risk societies.
The three-day
programme included: a keynote on “Cultural Risks in Digital Society”
delivered by Antonio
Ariño Villarroya, Vice Chancellor of Culture and Equality
at the University of Valencia; a one-day
Members’ Forum aimed at exchanging pedagogical methods; five parallel sessions
covering a variety of topics including audience development, heritage,
cultural leadership, music management, cultural governance; four study visits
to the Valencia’s most celebrated cultural institutions; and one best
practices platform, the Knowledge
Transfer Session, to share innovative projects and tap
into their potential to widely influence the sector.
The 7th edition of the ENCATC Annual Research Session
organised alongside this event also offered the delegates a range
of over 40 presentations on the current state of art in research on
cultural policy related topics, as elaborated in university communities
and research centres around the world. Once more, this annual gathering was
the best barometer of recent trends in academic and professional work in
the cultural sector.
Globalisation, technology, climate change, financial instability, and
social inequality were among the challenges and uncertainties analysed
and debated by the delegates during the conference and thus from a
cultural policy and management perspective. To address and react to our
risk realities, it is crucial to bridge influencers in policy, economics,
the environment, culture and society. Creators, cultural managers,
producers, entrepreneurs and leaders have the imagination to envision
creative synergies among the different sectors and key players. Threats
also means that within the cultural sector there must be a continual
reinvention and new ways to operate. In education and training,
universities need to evaluate how and what is taught to tomorrow’s
cultural managers to equip them with the skills and attitude to take on
the tough questions and obstacles they will surely encounter. The
research community should also be highly attuned to the trends and
questions needing their attention and analytic eye.
Reflecting on the three days of discussions and expertise delivered,
ENCATC President, Annick
Schramme said: “It
is undeniable that collaboration and a more entrepreneurial approach are
the ways forward if the arts and cultural sector wants to be sustainable
in the face of uncertainty and risk environments. A pooled wealth of
knowledge, innovative ideas, and resources are more powerful than any one
individual or institution. I am positive for the future. Together our
members and stakeholders can tackle challenges and be the inspiring
creative problem solvers with our teaching, training, research, projects,
and partnerships.”
In her closing words, she was joined by Antonio Ariño Villarroya, Vice
Chancellor of Culture and Equality at the University of Valencia, and Vicent Marzà,
Conseller of Education, Research, Culture and Sport at the Generalitat
Valenciana who shared their gratitude and enthusiasm for the conference’s
results that will certainly “impact
the future discussions and decisions taking place at university, city,
and regional level and thus for the benefit of the local academic and
cultural community as well as of the citizens of Valencia and Spain.”
The gathering in Valencia was also a unique occasion for all participants
to experience local culture, from the dance of “Moma and the Momos”, a
concert by Capella Ministers, a performance of “Tornejants d’Algemesi”,
and the “Muixerange d’Algemesi” which is recognised as UNESCO Intangible
Heritage of Humanity.
“The future is bright
when we see a rich diversity within the cultural sector represented –
from heritage, museums, performing arts, creative industries, arts and
health, cultural diplomacy, and more – coming together in Valencia
to respond to common challenges and see how their knowledge can be
shared, new ideas ignited, and collaborations fostered inside and outside
our network,” said GiannaLia
Cogliandro Beyens, ENCATC Secretary General.
To conclude this very successful conference, ENCATC President, Annick Schramme,
also announced the two finalists of the 3rd ENCATC Research
Award on Cultural Policy and Cultural Management: Elena Borin, from Italy
and Jonathan Price from the United Kingdom. Their research has been
earmarked to make important contributions to comparative research and
policy making and have captivated the jury with their work: Elena Borin for
her PhD thesis at the University of Ferrara, “Public-Private Partnership
in the Cultural Sector: A Comparative Analysis of European Models” and Jonathan Price
from Gray’s School of Art, Robert Gordon University with his PhD thesis
“The Discourse of Cultural Leadership”.
The 24th ENCATC Annual Conference was organised by ENCATC in
partnership with its member, the University of Valencia and its La Nau
Cultural Centre. The conference was also made possible thanks to the
support from the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, and
contributions from the Generalitat Valenciana and Valencia Turisme.
