Stockholm | IFACCA 9th World Summit on Arts & Culture, new dates

The IFACCA's 9th World Summit on Arts & Culture, which was postponed in February 2022, will be held in Stockholm 3–5 May 2023. Registrations for the Summit will open in September 2022.

The World Summit is a highly participatory networking platform that fosters exchange between policy makers and representatives from government, cultural and non-cultural sectors and civil society, which is open to IFACCA Members and the wider international community. Early booking is recommended, as places are strictly limited.

The 9th World Summit on Arts and Culture will set the agenda for safeguarding artistic freedom. Myriad positive outcomes derive from open creativity and cultural participation: self- and social-reflection and exposure to different perspectives and ideas can lead to personal, collective and social growth. The Summit will bring together leading policy makers, researchers, managers and practitioners from the arts, culture and related sectors from around the world to explore artistic freedom as a fundamental pillar of cultural policy and examine how we can – and why we should – safeguard artistic freedom. This freedom relies on a cultural value chain that fosters conditions in which artists can create, present, distribute and share their work; and in which citizens can participate in cultural life, which is a cultural right shared by all. The creation and safeguarding of these conditions are shared responsibilities for the international community.

Worldwide, policy makers and advocates have driven the improvement of these conditions and the protection of free artistic expression. However, while some progress has been made, the road ahead is complex – from political change, of political change, environmental disasters and the many effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. These have accentuated existing challenges for artists to create and for citizens to participate in cultural life.

Against this backdrop, the Summit will deep dive into the political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and cultural influences that affect – and shape our conceptions of – artistic freedom, and how we might strengthen and advance it.

Over the Summit participants will:

explore how artistic freedom is experienced across the globe, including who does and doesn't enjoy its benefits
draw out the opportunities artistic freedom affords and the challenges it faces on local and global levels
co-design agile solutions to improve artistic freedom at home, while contributing to advancing artistic freedom internationally.

The programme will explore the following themes: