24.03.2016
The Scottish Parliament is to once again host an International Culture Summit, bringing together delegations from across the globe to examine and debate how culture can encourage international dialogue.
It will take place at Holyrood on Wednesday 24 – Friday 26 August and is the result of a partnership between the Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Government, the UK Government, British Council, and the Edinburgh International Festival.
The Summit has established itself in the global political and cultural calendar as a place where ground-breaking artists, thinkers and arts leaders from around the world can come together with culture ministers to inspire positive change in arts and cultural policy.
The theme of Summit 2016, Culture: Building Resilient Communities reflects the Summit’s strong belief in the vital role that culture plays in the life of successful communities.
Announcing that the Summit would be returning to Holyrood, the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament the Rt Hon Tricia Marwick said:
“This event spreads the positive message of the role of the arts and culture in our society.
“I am proud that the Scottish Parliament is once again championing this event. I can think of no other place more relevant than Holyrood to bring together parliamentarians, artists and world leading thinkers in this field.”
Background
The inaugural Edinburgh International Culture Summit in 2012 was a resounding success and presented an unprecedented opportunity for cultural exchange, both between practitioners and policy-makers and between separate nation states.
Following widespread demand for future editions, the second Edinburgh International Culture Summit in 2014 provided a platform for continued conversations and idea-sharing, out of which emerged much new thinking and activity. Summit 2014 was acknowledged as a stimulating and worthwhile contribution to cultural policy debate.
Summit 2016 will present further significant opportunities for direct and open dialogue between politicians, policy-makers and artists, providing a forum for in-depth discussion on, and compelling accounts of, the power of the arts and culture to enrich individual lives and transform national ambitions. Summit 2016 will build on the strong foundations of the previous Culture Summits to encourage further sharing of ideas, debates and future collaborations.