Kiri

Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111

Office: J-70 02/232 - Tel. direct line +32 229-65376

EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EDUCATION, YOUTH, SPORT AND CULTURE

Culture and Creativity

Cultural Policy

Brussels, EAC.D.1/

NOTE FOR THE ATTENTION OF THE

MEMBERS OF THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Subject: Invitation to nominate experts for an Open Method of Coordination

(OMC) group on " Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and

creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis " under the EU

Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026 – Priority A

On 30 November 2022, the Council adopted a Resolution on the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-

20261, which focuses on four key priorities where EU level action can deliver clear added value:

(A) Artists and cultural professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors; (B) Culture

for the people: enhancing cultural participation and the role of culture in society; (C) Culture for

the planet: unleashing the power of culture; (D) Culture for co-creative partnerships:

strengthening the cultural dimension of EU external relations.

Under priority A, the EU Work Plan provides for the establishment of an Open Method of

Coordination (OMC) expert group "Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and

creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis" in the first half of 2024.

As for all OMC groups under the EU Work Plan for Culture, participation in the work of this

group is strongly encouraged but remains voluntary and Member States can join at any time.

If your Member State is interested in participating in this group, I would be grateful if you could

nominate two experts by 29 February 2024 respectively from the field of culture and from the

field of environment or climate related policies (see profile below),.

The first meeting of the group is foreseen to take place in Brussels 23-24 April 2024.

To inform the nomination process, please find below a few practical indications as to the timing,

profile of experts and reimbursements of their costs.

1 Official Journal C466/1 of 7.12.2022, link: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32022G1207(01)&from=EN

2

Frequency of meetings

Following the first meeting of this OMC group late March 2024 in Brussels, the group will meet

approximately 5-6 times until mid-2025. Some of these meetings will be held online.

Mandate for the group

According to the procedure laid down in the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026, the mandate

of this OMC group was finalised in the Cultural Affairs Committee based on a draft mandate

proposed by the Commission. The mandate, as agreed on 12 January, is at Annex 1 to this letter.

Profile of the experts

The OMC Group should be composed of experts – policymakers and practitioners –appointed by

Member States from the relevant government entities responsible for cultural policies and

environmental, climate and sustainability related policies.

The two experts should preferably have field experience, be involved in implementing relevant

actions on the ground and/or currently hold a function directly linked with the subject.

Member States may appoint experts from NGOs or cultural organisations, as well as from

regional and local governments or institutions.

Experts are expected to actively participate in the work of the group, by contributing to the

meetings with substantial oral and written input and presentations, as well with drafting texts

related to the group's deliverables and committing to disseminate its results to policy makers and

relevant stakeholders.

Experts should be able to contribute effectively to the discussions and fulfilment of the group's

mandate. They should therefore have a good knowledge of the relevant public policies, practices

and initiatives implemented by their country and/or by the EU in the field of culture, cultural

heritage, sustainability and green practices or policies impacting on the cultural and creative

sectors, including in connection with the energy crisis and challenges. The group will assess how

the green transition either affects the cultural sector and its organisations, or is influenced by the

input from and experiences made by the cultural institutions and creative professionals to address

the climate crisis, leveraging environmental-friendly attitudes, practices and behaviours.

Transparency

Publication of the names and positions of the members of the group in the published reports in

Publications Office of the EU, available to the general public, is subject to their prior freely

given, specific, informed and unambiguous consent, in compliance with Article 3(15) and Article

7 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725.

For the sake of transparency, documents related to OMC meetings including agendas and minutes

may be made available online on the European Commission Culture website.

Reimbursement

The Commission will reimburse travel expenses (for any physical meetings) for the maximum of

two participants per Member State, one from the cultural policy field and the other from the

environmental policy field. No accommodation costs will be covered and there will be no daily

allowance neither.

Chairperson(s)

3

The nomination letter from your institution or agency should indicate whether an expert would be

willing to chair or co-chair the working group. Candidates for this/these position(s) should be

made fully aware of the time investment that such a position requires, particularly with regard to

steering the preparation of the OMC group's expected output and coordinating the drafting

process. Good IT skills would also be desirable for any candidate(s) interested in the(se)

position(s). The expression of interest to serve as chair/co-chair should be accompanied by a CV

and a letter of motivation, which will be shared with all OMC group members prior to the

election of the chair(s). The election of the chair(s) will take place at the first meeting of the

OMC group.

Working language

The working language for the OMC group will be English only due to current budget limitations

for translation/interpretation, and in order to use resources in the most effective way. The

Commission will cover costs of translation of the executive summary of the group’s final report

into the 24 official EU languages. The group’s final report will be published in English only.

Member States are encouraged to organise for the translation of the report in their language, and

to make it available on relevant websites.

I would be grateful if you could complete the attached nomination form (Annex 2) and send it to

Ms Florence Baeke ([email protected] ) by 29 February 2024 and put EAC-UNITE-

[email protected] in copy.

My colleagues and I will be happy to answer any further queries you may have about the

nomination procedure.

I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Catherine MAGNANT

Head of Unit

Annexes: 1. Mandate of the group

2. Template for nomination

Electronically signed on 06/02/2024 18:51 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121

Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111

Office: J-70 02/232 - Tel. direct line +32 229-65376

EUROPEAN COMMISSION DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EDUCATION, YOUTH, SPORT AND CULTURE

Culture and Creativity

Cultural Policy

Brussels, EAC.D.1/

NOTE FOR THE ATTENTION OF THE

MEMBERS OF THE CULTURAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

Subject: Invitation to nominate experts for an Open Method of Coordination

(OMC) group on " Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and

creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis " under the EU

Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026 – Priority A

On 30 November 2022, the Council adopted a Resolution on the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-

20261, which focuses on four key priorities where EU level action can deliver clear added value:

(A) Artists and cultural professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors; (B) Culture

for the people: enhancing cultural participation and the role of culture in society; (C) Culture for

the planet: unleashing the power of culture; (D) Culture for co-creative partnerships:

strengthening the cultural dimension of EU external relations.

Under priority A, the EU Work Plan provides for the establishment of an Open Method of

Coordination (OMC) expert group "Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and

creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis" in the first half of 2024.

As for all OMC groups under the EU Work Plan for Culture, participation in the work of this

group is strongly encouraged but remains voluntary and Member States can join at any time.

If your Member State is interested in participating in this group, I would be grateful if you could

nominate two experts by 29 February 2024 respectively from the field of culture and from the

field of environment or climate related policies (see profile below),.

The first meeting of the group is foreseen to take place in Brussels 23-24 April 2024.

To inform the nomination process, please find below a few practical indications as to the timing,

profile of experts and reimbursements of their costs.

1 Official Journal C466/1 of 7.12.2022, link: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32022G1207(01)&from=EN

2

Frequency of meetings

Following the first meeting of this OMC group late March 2024 in Brussels, the group will meet

approximately 5-6 times until mid-2025. Some of these meetings will be held online.

Mandate for the group

According to the procedure laid down in the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026, the mandate

of this OMC group was finalised in the Cultural Affairs Committee based on a draft mandate

proposed by the Commission. The mandate, as agreed on 12 January, is at Annex 1 to this letter.

Profile of the experts

The OMC Group should be composed of experts – policymakers and practitioners –appointed by

Member States from the relevant government entities responsible for cultural policies and

environmental, climate and sustainability related policies.

The two experts should preferably have field experience, be involved in implementing relevant

actions on the ground and/or currently hold a function directly linked with the subject.

Member States may appoint experts from NGOs or cultural organisations, as well as from

regional and local governments or institutions.

Experts are expected to actively participate in the work of the group, by contributing to the

meetings with substantial oral and written input and presentations, as well with drafting texts

related to the group's deliverables and committing to disseminate its results to policy makers and

relevant stakeholders.

Experts should be able to contribute effectively to the discussions and fulfilment of the group's

mandate. They should therefore have a good knowledge of the relevant public policies, practices

and initiatives implemented by their country and/or by the EU in the field of culture, cultural

heritage, sustainability and green practices or policies impacting on the cultural and creative

sectors, including in connection with the energy crisis and challenges. The group will assess how

the green transition either affects the cultural sector and its organisations, or is influenced by the

input from and experiences made by the cultural institutions and creative professionals to address

the climate crisis, leveraging environmental-friendly attitudes, practices and behaviours.

Transparency

Publication of the names and positions of the members of the group in the published reports in

Publications Office of the EU, available to the general public, is subject to their prior freely

given, specific, informed and unambiguous consent, in compliance with Article 3(15) and Article

7 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725.

For the sake of transparency, documents related to OMC meetings including agendas and minutes

may be made available online on the European Commission Culture website.

Reimbursement

The Commission will reimburse travel expenses (for any physical meetings) for the maximum of

two participants per Member State, one from the cultural policy field and the other from the

environmental policy field. No accommodation costs will be covered and there will be no daily

allowance neither.

Chairperson(s)

3

The nomination letter from your institution or agency should indicate whether an expert would be

willing to chair or co-chair the working group. Candidates for this/these position(s) should be

made fully aware of the time investment that such a position requires, particularly with regard to

steering the preparation of the OMC group's expected output and coordinating the drafting

process. Good IT skills would also be desirable for any candidate(s) interested in the(se)

position(s). The expression of interest to serve as chair/co-chair should be accompanied by a CV

and a letter of motivation, which will be shared with all OMC group members prior to the

election of the chair(s). The election of the chair(s) will take place at the first meeting of the

OMC group.

Working language

The working language for the OMC group will be English only due to current budget limitations

for translation/interpretation, and in order to use resources in the most effective way. The

Commission will cover costs of translation of the executive summary of the group’s final report

into the 24 official EU languages. The group’s final report will be published in English only.

Member States are encouraged to organise for the translation of the report in their language, and

to make it available on relevant websites.

I would be grateful if you could complete the attached nomination form (Annex 2) and send it to

Ms Florence Baeke ([email protected] ) by 29 February 2024 and put EAC-UNITE-

[email protected] in copy.

My colleagues and I will be happy to answer any further queries you may have about the

nomination procedure.

I am looking forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Catherine MAGNANT

Head of Unit

Annexes: 1. Mandate of the group

2. Template for nomination

Electronically signed on 06/02/2024 18:51 (UTC+01) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121

5456/24 ATR/fco 1

TREE.1.B EN

Council of the European Union

Brussels, 15 January 2024 (OR. en) 5456/24 CULT 4 ENV 51 SUSTDEV 6 RELEX 43 SOC 23 EMPL 16 ENER 20 CLIMA 23

NOTE

From: General Secretariat of the Council

To: Delegations

No. prev. doc.: 5115/24

Subject: Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of Member States’ experts on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis”

‒ Mandate

Delegations will find attached the mandate of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of

Member States’ experts on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with

a specific focus on the energy crisis”, as approved by the Cultural Affairs Committee (CAC) at its

meeting on 12 January 2024.

5456/24 ATR/fco 2

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

ANNEX

Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of Member States’ experts

on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on

the energy crisis” set up under the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026

Priority A: ‘Artists and cultural professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors’

- Mandate –

A. BACKGROUND

1. There are two complementary challenges to be addressed when it comes to the “underused

power of culture”1 in the context of the Green Deal goals. On the one hand, there is a high risk

that cultural and creative sectors (CCS) are left behind the green transition: they should

therefore be accompanied and enabled to adapt. On the other, there is a strong potential and

key role for arts and culture to contribute to positive shifts of attitudes and practices towards a

more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable future both at the individual

and the societal level, as well as to shape the green transition and climate action in Europe.

This role and contribution need to be acknowledged and considered in policy making,

leveraging their intrinsic creativity and innovation potential.

1 OMC report Stormy times - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 3

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

2. The EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-20262, under priority A ‘Artists and cultural

professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors’, envisages the creation of a

dedicated Open Method of Coordination (OMC) group of Member States’ experts focusing on

exchanging experiences and identifying transferable best practices in the CCS on ways to

stimulate their green transition with a specific focus on the energy crisis. The Work Plan notes

that there is an urgent need to further strengthen the resilience of the CCS, to support their

recovery and diversity, and to encourage their engagement with the sustainability objectives.

3. The connection between culture and the European Green Deal deserves greater attention:

strategic EU initiatives, such as the New European Bauhaus, have demonstrated the

importance of horizontally-oriented policies, like culture, to contribute to making the green

deal tangible in society and to co-create solutions addressing better quality of life and of

experience in living spaces.

4. The increasing evidence about the cultural dimension of sustainable development and the

central role played by culture across several policy fields3 for leveraging the capacity of the

CCS to drive transformation pathways towards greater environmental sustainability, makes

the debate about the position of cultural policies within the Green Deal particularly timely and

urgent.

2 OJ C 466, 7.12.2022 3 EC report on the cultural dimension of sustainable development in EU actions (Dec. 2022)

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=COM:2022:709:FIN

5456/24 ATR/fco 4

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

5. The debate and recognition about culture as a global public good, gained momentum at both

the international and EU level, following MONDIACULT, the UNESCO Conference on

culture and sustainable development held in Mexico in September 2022, and its final

Declaration4. Therefore, also the need for a specific stand-alone goal for culture in the post-

2030 Agenda has been increasingly expressed by both cultural stakeholders and at political

level5.

6. The Ministers of Culture of the EU, at their informal meeting on 25-26 September 2023,

convened by the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU in Cáceres, Spain, adopted the

“Cáceres Declaration”6 in which they ‘without pre-empting the coming post-2030 discussions,

(…) committed to working for culture to be recognised in and of itself as a new sustainable

development goal’ and have recognised that ‘culture is sustainability’ and 'a key element in

the fight against climate change’.

7. The Commission has been seeking insights on how to make its programmes more sustainable.

In 2021, it commissioned the study “Greening the Creative Europe7 Programme” to help

achieve its objectives of fighting climate change and to support its efforts to make the

Creative Europe Programme more environmental-friendly. The study8 was published in May

2023.

4

https://www.unesco.org/sites/default/files/medias/fichiers/2022/10/6.MONDIACULT_

EN_DRAFT%20FINAL%20DECLARATION_FINAL_1.pdf 5 E.g. G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration; New Delhi, India, 9-10 September 2023 6 https://spanish-presidency.consilium.europa.eu/en/news/caceres-declaration/ 7 OJ L 189, 28.5.2021, p. 34 8 How Creative Europe aims to go green | Culture and Creativity (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 5

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

8. In 2023, the Commission also launched a Voices of Culture structured dialogue with civil

society on “Culture and Creative Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition and facing

the Energy Crisis” which published its brainstorming report9 at the end of September. The

report assesses and analyses several ways in which culture and creativity offer a source of

innovation for climate change mitigation, hold the key to reshaping behaviours and living

practices meaningfully and at scale, and are a source of societal resilience in the face of

climate change effects.

9. Three OMC Groups, under the Work Plan for Culture 2019-2022, produced essential reports

respectively on the “The cultural dimension of sustainable development”10, on “Strengthening

cultural heritage resilience for climate change”11, and “Towards a shared culture of

architecture - Investing in a high-quality living environment for everyone”12: these reports

represent a solid basis to build on for addressing the overall role of culture in the green

transition and for developing reinforced policies interlinking culture and the European Green

Deal strategies to the benefit of the CCS.

B. ROLE, SCOPE AND EXPECTED RESULTS OF THE OMC GROUP

1. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity and in full respect of Member States’

competences in the field of cultural policy and with regard to the shared competences in

environmental policy, including climate change, as laid down in the EU Treaties, the OMC

Group should explore how to strengthen the cross-sectoral collaboration between cultural and

environmental sustainability policies in the EU and in the Member States, and make

corresponding recommendations.

9 Brainstorming Report ‘Culture and Creative Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition

and facing the Energy Crisis’ now available - Voices of Culture 10 Stormy times - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu) 11 Strengthening cultural heritage resilience for climate change - Publications Office of the EU

(europa.eu) 12 Towards a shared culture of architecture - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 6

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

2. The overall aim of this OMC Group is to define ways to identify effective policy solutions

and policy tools or strategies to support and accompany the CCS in the green transition at

regional, national and European levels.

3. To achieve this aim, the OMC Group should

a) collect best practices and examples, followed by a deep analysis of the most recent

policy strategies and initiatives developed at regional, national and European levels to

support and accompany the CCS in the green transition;

b) assess the findings collected through recent initiatives, gather additional examples and

exchange expertise in the field of regional and national practices and methods for

greening CCS;

c) based on this, make recommendations on how to bring results to the next stage at

regional, national and European levels.

4. The OMC Group should take inspiration from and build on the following recent works and

achievements to produce the Group’s specific recommendations:

a) The outcomes of the former OMC Groups on the cultural dimension of sustainable

development and on strengthening cultural heritage resilience for climate change: the

group should explore ways to translate these outcomes into replicable policy solutions

for culture to tackle the green challenges; it should also investigate possible synergies

with the recommendations developed by the OMC Group on high-quality architecture.

5456/24 ATR/fco 7

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

b) The ideas conveyed in the Voices of Culture (VoC) report on “Culture and Creative

Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition and facing the Energy Crisis” whose

experts from civil society represented a wide range of cultural sectors and organisations.

In order to leverage some key recommendations from the VoC report, the OMC group

should put much emphasis on cross-sectoral collaboration, on best practices and

solutions, give particular attention to the areas of performing arts, music, museums, film

production and consider some of the report’s concrete proposals for dedicated support

initiatives at EU level in this field.

c) The analysis undertaken through the study “Greening the Creative Europe Programme”,

in particular considering possible indicators for the “greening” of future cultural

projects.

d) The considerations from the stocktaking exercise on the energy crisis and the CCS for

sharing best practices13, undertaken and coordinated by the Swedish Presidency of the

Council in the first semester 2023.

e) Each time possible and when relevant, projects and measures supported by the

Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) across the Member States where different

investments on culture, to address the Green Deal goals, have been put in place through

National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs).

13 Presidency discussion Paper 5106/23 (January 2023) under the Work Plan for Culture 2023-

2026.

5456/24 ATR/fco 8

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

f) Ongoing initiatives focusing on the development of CO2 calculators14 and on the

development of rules, guidelines15 and criteria to be undertaken by CCS’ overall or in

specific segments and sub-sectors of their activity.

g) Existing “green charters”16 in different fields of artistic activities.

C. WORKING APPROACHES AND FINAL OUTPUT

1. The OMC Group should be composed on an equal basis of Member States’ experts from the

relevant government entities responsible for cultural policy and for environmental policies,

including climate change, according to the relevant structures in the Member States. Experts

should preferably have field experience and been involved in project implementation and/ or

policy design.

2. The OMC Group should involve relevant Commission services, particularly DG EAC, DG

CLIMA, DG ENV, DG ENER, DG RTD and other DGs, as needed.

14 Particularly relevant in this context, as a possible source for benchmarking, is the envisaged

development of an “EU common tool of measurements for CO2 impact for the audio-visual

sector” that the Commission intends to make available under Creative Europe programme

(MEDIA), to provide a common baseline to European audio-visual production companies.

Another relevant example the OMC group could look at is the recent common CO2 standard

for the creative sector adopted in Germany - CO2 culture standard - which was accompanied

by the publication of the ‘CO2Cultural calculator’. 15 Some relevant examples are the “Creative Climate Tools”, developed by the project Julie’s

Bicycle for the creative community, or the “Future Festival Tools” funded by Erasmus+ for

making festivals sustainable. 16 Green charters are codes of good practice that some funding programmes have started to

consider or develop as a way to promote sustainable implementation of their activities, in

line with the European Green Deal goals.

5456/24 ATR/fco 9

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

3. The OMC Group may, when relevant for further inspiration and input, decide to involve

external experts, such as:

a) representatives from CCS and particularly managers, directors or leaders of cultural and

cultural heritage institutions as well as creative industries’ members with solid

experience in the field of greening practices and climate change related strategies and

projects on the ground;

b) researchers, representatives from academia, civil society and relevant professional

networks, including practitioners with a strong experience on energy performance

assessment, circular economy and energy efficiency-oriented approaches within cultural

venues and cultural activities.

c) The OMC Group may also consider inviting experts from non-EU countries

participating in the Creative Europe programme and / or having a candidate status, when

relevant to the Group’s work.

4. The OMC Group should elect a chair from within its members.

5. The recommendations and good practices should be compiled in a final report, which will be

drafted by its members with technical support from the Commission.

5456/24 ATR/fco 10

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

Topic:

Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on the

energy crisis.

Working methods:

OMC group – exchanging good practices

Rationale:

The CCS must not be left behind in the green transition. They must reinforce their contribution to

a sustainable future and play an active role in the green transition, climate action and Europe’s

recovery, with a specific focus on the current energy crisis, while considering the Union’s

geographical diversity and characteristics. A variety of practices and initiatives have already been

tried out. The work under this action should reflect the outcomes of the OMC groups on the

cultural dimension of sustainable development and on strengthening cultural heritage resilience

for climate change. Exchanging experience with regard to the RRF for this topic should also be

taken into consideration.

Target outputs:

Exchanging experiences and identifying transferable best practices in the CCS (especially in

performing arts, music, museums, film production), including on CO2 calculators; supporting

CCS efforts to adapt to the green transition.

5456/24 ATR/fco 1

TREE.1.B EN

Council of the European Union

Brussels, 15 January 2024 (OR. en) 5456/24 CULT 4 ENV 51 SUSTDEV 6 RELEX 43 SOC 23 EMPL 16 ENER 20 CLIMA 23

NOTE

From: General Secretariat of the Council

To: Delegations

No. prev. doc.: 5115/24

Subject: Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of Member States’ experts on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on the energy crisis”

‒ Mandate

Delegations will find attached the mandate of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of

Member States’ experts on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with

a specific focus on the energy crisis”, as approved by the Cultural Affairs Committee (CAC) at its

meeting on 12 January 2024.

5456/24 ATR/fco 2

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

ANNEX

Open Method of Coordination (OMC) Group of Member States’ experts

on “Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on

the energy crisis” set up under the EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-2026

Priority A: ‘Artists and cultural professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors’

- Mandate –

A. BACKGROUND

1. There are two complementary challenges to be addressed when it comes to the “underused

power of culture”1 in the context of the Green Deal goals. On the one hand, there is a high risk

that cultural and creative sectors (CCS) are left behind the green transition: they should

therefore be accompanied and enabled to adapt. On the other, there is a strong potential and

key role for arts and culture to contribute to positive shifts of attitudes and practices towards a

more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable future both at the individual

and the societal level, as well as to shape the green transition and climate action in Europe.

This role and contribution need to be acknowledged and considered in policy making,

leveraging their intrinsic creativity and innovation potential.

1 OMC report Stormy times - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 3

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

2. The EU Work Plan for Culture 2023-20262, under priority A ‘Artists and cultural

professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors’, envisages the creation of a

dedicated Open Method of Coordination (OMC) group of Member States’ experts focusing on

exchanging experiences and identifying transferable best practices in the CCS on ways to

stimulate their green transition with a specific focus on the energy crisis. The Work Plan notes

that there is an urgent need to further strengthen the resilience of the CCS, to support their

recovery and diversity, and to encourage their engagement with the sustainability objectives.

3. The connection between culture and the European Green Deal deserves greater attention:

strategic EU initiatives, such as the New European Bauhaus, have demonstrated the

importance of horizontally-oriented policies, like culture, to contribute to making the green

deal tangible in society and to co-create solutions addressing better quality of life and of

experience in living spaces.

4. The increasing evidence about the cultural dimension of sustainable development and the

central role played by culture across several policy fields3 for leveraging the capacity of the

CCS to drive transformation pathways towards greater environmental sustainability, makes

the debate about the position of cultural policies within the Green Deal particularly timely and

urgent.

2 OJ C 466, 7.12.2022 3 EC report on the cultural dimension of sustainable development in EU actions (Dec. 2022)

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=COM:2022:709:FIN

5456/24 ATR/fco 4

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

5. The debate and recognition about culture as a global public good, gained momentum at both

the international and EU level, following MONDIACULT, the UNESCO Conference on

culture and sustainable development held in Mexico in September 2022, and its final

Declaration4. Therefore, also the need for a specific stand-alone goal for culture in the post-

2030 Agenda has been increasingly expressed by both cultural stakeholders and at political

level5.

6. The Ministers of Culture of the EU, at their informal meeting on 25-26 September 2023,

convened by the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU in Cáceres, Spain, adopted the

“Cáceres Declaration”6 in which they ‘without pre-empting the coming post-2030 discussions,

(…) committed to working for culture to be recognised in and of itself as a new sustainable

development goal’ and have recognised that ‘culture is sustainability’ and 'a key element in

the fight against climate change’.

7. The Commission has been seeking insights on how to make its programmes more sustainable.

In 2021, it commissioned the study “Greening the Creative Europe7 Programme” to help

achieve its objectives of fighting climate change and to support its efforts to make the

Creative Europe Programme more environmental-friendly. The study8 was published in May

2023.

4

https://www.unesco.org/sites/default/files/medias/fichiers/2022/10/6.MONDIACULT_

EN_DRAFT%20FINAL%20DECLARATION_FINAL_1.pdf 5 E.g. G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration; New Delhi, India, 9-10 September 2023 6 https://spanish-presidency.consilium.europa.eu/en/news/caceres-declaration/ 7 OJ L 189, 28.5.2021, p. 34 8 How Creative Europe aims to go green | Culture and Creativity (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 5

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

8. In 2023, the Commission also launched a Voices of Culture structured dialogue with civil

society on “Culture and Creative Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition and facing

the Energy Crisis” which published its brainstorming report9 at the end of September. The

report assesses and analyses several ways in which culture and creativity offer a source of

innovation for climate change mitigation, hold the key to reshaping behaviours and living

practices meaningfully and at scale, and are a source of societal resilience in the face of

climate change effects.

9. Three OMC Groups, under the Work Plan for Culture 2019-2022, produced essential reports

respectively on the “The cultural dimension of sustainable development”10, on “Strengthening

cultural heritage resilience for climate change”11, and “Towards a shared culture of

architecture - Investing in a high-quality living environment for everyone”12: these reports

represent a solid basis to build on for addressing the overall role of culture in the green

transition and for developing reinforced policies interlinking culture and the European Green

Deal strategies to the benefit of the CCS.

B. ROLE, SCOPE AND EXPECTED RESULTS OF THE OMC GROUP

1. In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity and in full respect of Member States’

competences in the field of cultural policy and with regard to the shared competences in

environmental policy, including climate change, as laid down in the EU Treaties, the OMC

Group should explore how to strengthen the cross-sectoral collaboration between cultural and

environmental sustainability policies in the EU and in the Member States, and make

corresponding recommendations.

9 Brainstorming Report ‘Culture and Creative Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition

and facing the Energy Crisis’ now available - Voices of Culture 10 Stormy times - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu) 11 Strengthening cultural heritage resilience for climate change - Publications Office of the EU

(europa.eu) 12 Towards a shared culture of architecture - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu)

5456/24 ATR/fco 6

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

2. The overall aim of this OMC Group is to define ways to identify effective policy solutions

and policy tools or strategies to support and accompany the CCS in the green transition at

regional, national and European levels.

3. To achieve this aim, the OMC Group should

a) collect best practices and examples, followed by a deep analysis of the most recent

policy strategies and initiatives developed at regional, national and European levels to

support and accompany the CCS in the green transition;

b) assess the findings collected through recent initiatives, gather additional examples and

exchange expertise in the field of regional and national practices and methods for

greening CCS;

c) based on this, make recommendations on how to bring results to the next stage at

regional, national and European levels.

4. The OMC Group should take inspiration from and build on the following recent works and

achievements to produce the Group’s specific recommendations:

a) The outcomes of the former OMC Groups on the cultural dimension of sustainable

development and on strengthening cultural heritage resilience for climate change: the

group should explore ways to translate these outcomes into replicable policy solutions

for culture to tackle the green challenges; it should also investigate possible synergies

with the recommendations developed by the OMC Group on high-quality architecture.

5456/24 ATR/fco 7

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

b) The ideas conveyed in the Voices of Culture (VoC) report on “Culture and Creative

Sectors and Industries driving Green Transition and facing the Energy Crisis” whose

experts from civil society represented a wide range of cultural sectors and organisations.

In order to leverage some key recommendations from the VoC report, the OMC group

should put much emphasis on cross-sectoral collaboration, on best practices and

solutions, give particular attention to the areas of performing arts, music, museums, film

production and consider some of the report’s concrete proposals for dedicated support

initiatives at EU level in this field.

c) The analysis undertaken through the study “Greening the Creative Europe Programme”,

in particular considering possible indicators for the “greening” of future cultural

projects.

d) The considerations from the stocktaking exercise on the energy crisis and the CCS for

sharing best practices13, undertaken and coordinated by the Swedish Presidency of the

Council in the first semester 2023.

e) Each time possible and when relevant, projects and measures supported by the

Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) across the Member States where different

investments on culture, to address the Green Deal goals, have been put in place through

National Recovery and Resilience Plans (NRRPs).

13 Presidency discussion Paper 5106/23 (January 2023) under the Work Plan for Culture 2023-

2026.

5456/24 ATR/fco 8

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

f) Ongoing initiatives focusing on the development of CO2 calculators14 and on the

development of rules, guidelines15 and criteria to be undertaken by CCS’ overall or in

specific segments and sub-sectors of their activity.

g) Existing “green charters”16 in different fields of artistic activities.

C. WORKING APPROACHES AND FINAL OUTPUT

1. The OMC Group should be composed on an equal basis of Member States’ experts from the

relevant government entities responsible for cultural policy and for environmental policies,

including climate change, according to the relevant structures in the Member States. Experts

should preferably have field experience and been involved in project implementation and/ or

policy design.

2. The OMC Group should involve relevant Commission services, particularly DG EAC, DG

CLIMA, DG ENV, DG ENER, DG RTD and other DGs, as needed.

14 Particularly relevant in this context, as a possible source for benchmarking, is the envisaged

development of an “EU common tool of measurements for CO2 impact for the audio-visual

sector” that the Commission intends to make available under Creative Europe programme

(MEDIA), to provide a common baseline to European audio-visual production companies.

Another relevant example the OMC group could look at is the recent common CO2 standard

for the creative sector adopted in Germany - CO2 culture standard - which was accompanied

by the publication of the ‘CO2Cultural calculator’. 15 Some relevant examples are the “Creative Climate Tools”, developed by the project Julie’s

Bicycle for the creative community, or the “Future Festival Tools” funded by Erasmus+ for

making festivals sustainable. 16 Green charters are codes of good practice that some funding programmes have started to

consider or develop as a way to promote sustainable implementation of their activities, in

line with the European Green Deal goals.

5456/24 ATR/fco 9

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

3. The OMC Group may, when relevant for further inspiration and input, decide to involve

external experts, such as:

a) representatives from CCS and particularly managers, directors or leaders of cultural and

cultural heritage institutions as well as creative industries’ members with solid

experience in the field of greening practices and climate change related strategies and

projects on the ground;

b) researchers, representatives from academia, civil society and relevant professional

networks, including practitioners with a strong experience on energy performance

assessment, circular economy and energy efficiency-oriented approaches within cultural

venues and cultural activities.

c) The OMC Group may also consider inviting experts from non-EU countries

participating in the Creative Europe programme and / or having a candidate status, when

relevant to the Group’s work.

4. The OMC Group should elect a chair from within its members.

5. The recommendations and good practices should be compiled in a final report, which will be

drafted by its members with technical support from the Commission.

5456/24 ATR/fco 10

ANNEX TREE.1.B EN

Topic:

Stimulate the green transition of the cultural and creative sectors, with a specific focus on the

energy crisis.

Working methods:

OMC group – exchanging good practices

Rationale:

The CCS must not be left behind in the green transition. They must reinforce their contribution to

a sustainable future and play an active role in the green transition, climate action and Europe’s

recovery, with a specific focus on the current energy crisis, while considering the Union’s

geographical diversity and characteristics. A variety of practices and initiatives have already been

tried out. The work under this action should reflect the outcomes of the OMC groups on the

cultural dimension of sustainable development and on strengthening cultural heritage resilience

for climate change. Exchanging experience with regard to the RRF for this topic should also be

taken into consideration.

Target outputs:

Exchanging experiences and identifying transferable best practices in the CCS (especially in

performing arts, music, museums, film production), including on CO2 calculators; supporting

CCS efforts to adapt to the green transition.