Values and practicalities of fair(er) international cultural cooperation
On December 6th 2019, DutchCulture gathered a group of 40 international experts at Broedplaats Lely in Amsterdam to discuss values and practicalities of fair(er) international cultural cooperation. This closed meeting followed the first gathering about this topic that was inspired by the publication of the toolkit Beyond Curiosity and Desire: Towards Fairer International Collaborations in the Arts earlier in 2018 by IETM with On the Move and DutchCulture.
Goals
The first gathering focused on funding, the second gathering evolved around climate change, more specifically about the questions whether and how international cultural cooperation can be organised in a way that is fair to the climate? This report is a summary of the discussion on December 6th. The full report can be read or downloaded.
Mutual understanding
- We acknowledge we don’t fully grasp all perspectives on (changing) climate change.
- We recognize the notion of justified international exchange needs to change.
- We understand the need to reinterpret the idea of what we exchange and in which direction.
- We accept the moral responsibility to change our own practice and share our learnings.
- We accept the responsibility that comes with the influential status of the arts.
Practical recommendations
- Change your paradigm.
- Incorporate fair and ecological thinking into you practice.
- Embrace locality.
- Focus on ecologically fair collaborations.
- Address the power of funders and those who are well funded.
- Don’t forget systemic change is needed.
- Harness the power of education.