понеделник, 2 септември 2013 г.
Sofia Conversations for Europe Concept
Sofia Conversations on Europe, 13 September 2013
Introduction:
The Sofia Conversations on
Europe will occur at a particular and important moment for the
Bulgarian society. It is a moment of political instability and increased civil society engagement in public life.
This is not a situation unique to Bulgaria. There are many demonstrations, protests and citizen
uprising around
the globe
–
Turkey, Brazil,
Egypt.
Many other protests are
less
evident processes and are rarely covered by
conventional
media and therefore are less visible to the general public, for example the portrayal of the Bulgarian protests in the international media.
What is special and unique in each and every case is how the civil society manages (or does not
manage) to develop its own long-term strategy
for change and implement it. Because as David
Rothkoph
said in a recent article in Foreign Policy1: "The greatest force to be overcome in
governments and societies everywhere is inertia. Demonstrations are
easy. Lasting change is hard."
The Sofia Conversations will explore how Bulgarians who are - needless to say - also European,
are
shaping their
own plan and their
own
aims for development based on
the European values of freedom, active citizenship and personal responsibility, but also transparency,
openness and
accountability of public authorities, etc. It is slow and difficult process, but what is at stake is of
great importance: to change the overall situation we are living in.
In addition, the Sofia Conversations
will
examine the role of artists and intellectuals in these
processes. And moreover, what are the connections between art and culture and active citizenship?
Finally, the Sofia Conversations
will
pose more pragmatic questions about the development of
more favourable conditions for arts and culture in Europe and in Bulgaria, including through the
financial instruments of the European Commission.
Two horizontal issues:
1. The European dimension
The Sofia Conversation on Europe 2013 is part of a pan-European process started in
2012 with the Berlin
Conference "A
Soul for Europe" and
including civil society debates with politicians, artists and intellectuals in Brussels,
Amsterdam, Guimarães, Cluj, Lyon and other cities in Europe. It will culminate in the Berlin Conference
2014
organized
under the patronage
of the
European Parliament
where
the various
issues
on
the European future will be discussed and further steps for changes will be defined.
The discussions will not concentrate on an inventory of the challenges Bulgarians are facing today but will be a debate about European challenges in a Member State and how
active European citizens could deal with them. Guests from Germany, Netherlands, Hungary, Belgium, Romania and other countries will join Bulgarians in discussing the
future of Europe.
1 "You Say You Want a
Revolution?",
Foreign Policy, July 1, 2013:
2. Culture as a driving force
The Sofia Conversations is
based
on
the understanding that active citizenship
is impossible without an active personal involvement in art and culture.
Moreover, European citizenship is a cultural issue and Europe is not just an economic
project but primarily a cultural one. Therefore European citizenship is a cultural issue.
Thus, the debates will always refer to the place of art and culture in our society and their role in our common development.
Four Panels:
1. Europe as a Cultural and
Civic Project. The Debate on the Future of Europe.
2. Citizens’ Active Participation
in the
Policy Processes. The Role of
Artists and
Intellectuals
3. The “European Capital of Culture” as a Citizens' Project
4. EU Structural
Funds as
an Instrument
for Development through
Culture.
Lessons
Learned and New Challenges.
Content of the four topics:
Europe as a Cultural and Civic Project. The Debate on the
Future of
Europe.
Europe is a cultural project. Europe is more than an economical and financial union and the
future of the Union depends on deepening cultural integration, while preserving
the
cultural diversity
of Europe. Projects like “New Narratives for Europe” will be discussed, but with the clear understanding that the new narratives and ideas for Europe should be created from the
citizens, not imposed from above.
Europe is a citizens' project. The future of Europe is only possible through cooperation between
citizens and institutions.
A Union of Member states is not enough anymore. The citizens of Europe demand better representation and stronger participation in decision-making.
We will discuss how all of this could be shaped and examples from different European countries.
In addition: Where is Bulgaria in the debate about the future of Europe and why do the
Bulgarian citizens and politicians not participate actively in the defining of their own future? And – can we speak about a European periphery
– East and South – which is often taken as an
object and not as a subject in the European development?
Citizens’ Active Participation in the Policy Processes. The Role of
Artists and Intellectuals.
Is it possible
to develop a citizens' agenda for the development of Bulgaria and the European Union
alongside the official political agendas? How can the citizens' agenda interact with the agenda of the institutions and political parties? How to overcome the raising mistrust into the
policy world and to give
voice of the different sectors and layers of the civic society?
What is the role of the artists
and intellectuals
in
these processes? Are the artists
just
a colourful,
creative and popular parts of the process? Or their role is much bigger and important – not just
to
entertain, but to help creating new visions for the future? Are the European and Bulgarian societies interested in listening to their intellectuals?
What can we learn about Europe from the Bulgarian situation?
The “European Capital of
Culture” as a Citizens' Project
The European Capital of Culture (ECoC) is a huge project with a great possible impact on every city which applies it, and certainly
on the cities which are awarded and participate, including
positive impact on city image, on city economy, on urban development and social cohesion. But
ECoC
is not a tourism development
project. ECoC is about culture and citizens'
participation.
The main ECoC question is how a city could be sustainably transformed with the power of culture. A transformation
which is not artificial or superficial, but a real change made together with the citizens and the artists. Are the Bulgarian applicant cities prepared for such a
transformation and what are the European examples? What would the European dimension of this process be?
In addition, ECoC should be seen as a process that begins several years before and lasts many years
after
the
actual title year (2019 in the Bulgarian case).
What we have to do
now in order to create conditions
for
a successful ECoC year? And what we have to achieve in 2019 in order to make the desired change and to keep the development? Is the sustainability of the ECoC project crucial and is it closely related to the sustainability of the artists and art organizations in the
city? Does the project create a stable and favourable environment for flourishing of the arts and development of the artists or not?
EU Structural Funds as an Instrument for
Development through
Culture.
Lessons
Learned and New Challenges.
The EU Structural Funds are aimed at achieving "smart, sustainable and inclusive growth". Art
and culture could
facilitate
achieving these
aims
and not
only through so-called "creative industries".
In 2009 the
Conference "A Soul
for Europe"
in Sofia
led
to significant change
in the
Operational Program "Regional Development" and 10 million EUR was reallocated for "innovative cultural events". It was an extraordinary breakthrough, not only for Bulgaria, but also at European level, because never before were funds for Regional Development were guided with a special scheme for development of the living contemporary culture.
At the same time implementing
this scheme in Bulgaria brought many problems and divulged many undecided issues. Unclear criteria and complex administrative issues (including public
procurement)
added up to extreme difficulties in the implementation process of almost every project. Moreover, civic organizations planned as the main beneficiaries were actually excluded from the scheme and they stayed only
as
partners of the municipalities, under the argument that
the
non-governmental sector lacks the capacity to manage with European funds.
Now, in the process of preparation of the new generation of operational programs we would like
to avoid the old mistakes and to create better conditions for urban and regional development
through cultural projects.
The aim of this panel is to explore the Bulgarian and Europe-wide experience of utilizing culture for structural development and to discuss how this experience could be strengthen with the
Structural Funds.
An important aim
of the
conference
One of the aims of the Sofia Conversation
on Europe is to create a platform – on a Bulgarian
ground – for equal and open dialogue between politicians, citizens, artists and the intellectuals on themes of national and European significance. In addition, the conference organisers
aim to
create prerequisites and mechanisms to guarantee the continuation of this dialogue on a long term basis.
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