Secure a future for cultural life in Europe - open letter to EU leaders

Following the open letter published by 110 pan-European networks on 30 October 2020 "Make culture central in the EU recovery", the group comes together again to reiterate their call to the national governments and the European Commission. In the second open letter coordinated by Culture Action Europe and published today by the group, the European cultural community call on the Member States and the European Commission to secure a future for culture and cultural life in Europe.

Culture must be included in each and every National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) that EU countries should present to the European Commission before the 30 April deadline. The representatives of the European cultural ecosystem urge governments to dedicate at least 2% of the Recovery Fund to culture and put culture as a priority sector when using funds from Next Generation EU. In addition, the now 110+ cultural networks call on the Member States to engage with the representatives of their cultural communities and civil society organisations in the design and implementation of the NRRPs. “Long-term structural support to rebuild the European cultural ecosystem needs to be co-developed, involving all relevant stakeholders, both public and private”, reads the letter.

Ensuring that culture is explicitly included in the NRRPs will help secure both the future of the sector and its important contribution to Europe’s future. Reinvigorating the cultural ecosystem not only offers hope to millions of workers who saw their jobs endangered by the pandemic, it can also create new meaning and purpose for all Europeans and the European project.