June 2026

On 25 June 2026, this year’s General Assembly of Culture Action Europe (CAE) took place online. The meeting focused on the presentation of the organisation’s activities in 2025 and the annual accounts of last year, the approval of the budget for 2027, and the further development of the strategic direction of the European cultural network.

In addition, the BEYOND Satellites 2026 were unveiled and current developments in cultural policy advocacy were discussed.

In the advocacy part, CAE presented, amongst other things, the Name Place Fund campaign, which advocates for culture to be firmly embedded in the European Union’s political priorities.

An open letter regarding the newly planned EU programme AgoraEU was also discussed. The aim of the letter’s initiators is to highlight the importance of strong and long-term cultural funding at European level. From 2028, the EU is set to provide cultural funding under the AgoraEU programme.

Of particular interest to the IGBK is the new project Alliance for Socially Engaged Arts Advocacy Partnership, which brings together practitioners of socially engaged art across Europe and develops joint strategies for cultural policy advocacy.

The latest developments from the Action Group Working Conditions, which focuses on fair working conditions and social security for those working in the cultural sector, were also presented.

The General Assembly highlighted the importance of close cooperation between European cultural organisations in order to jointly raise the profile of their positions at European level and to strengthen the standing of art and culture within political decision-making processes.

↑