European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018

PURPOSE: to designate 2018 as the European Year of Cultural Heritage.

PROPOSED ACT: Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council.

ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council.

BACKGROUND: the ideals, principles and values embedded in the European cultural heritage constitute a shared source of remembrance, understanding, identity, dialogue, cohesion and creativity for Europe.

Since the adoption of the European Agenda for Culture in 2007, cultural heritage has been a priority under successive Council Work Plans for Culture, including the current plan for the period 2015-2018.

The Council, in its conclusions on participatory governance of cultural heritage of 25 November 2014, invited the Commission to consider presenting a proposal for a ‘European Year of Cultural Heritage’. The European Parliament, in its resolution recommended designating, preferably for 2018, a European Year of Cultural Heritage.24

The heritage sector in Europe is facing many challenges. These include: decreasing public budgets; declining participation in traditional cultural activities; increasing environmental and physical pressures on heritage sites; transforming value chains and expectations as a result of the digital shift; and the illegal trafficking of cultural artefacts.

Against this backdrop, the main objective is to raise awareness of the challenges and opportunities and highlight the role of the EU in promoting shared solutions.

CONTENT: it is proposed to designate the year 2018 as the ‘European Year of Cultural Heritage’.

Objectives: the European Year shall:

• contribute to promoting the role of European cultural heritage as a pivotal component of cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue. It should highlight the best means to ensure its conservation and safeguarding and its enjoyment by a wider and more diversified public. This includes through audience development measures and heritage education, in full respect of the competences of the Member States, thereby promoting social inclusion and integration;
• enhance the contribution of European cultural heritage to the economy and the society, through its direct and indirect economic potential. This includes the capacity to underpin the cultural and creative industries and inspire creation and innovation, promote sustainable tourism, enhance social cohesion and generate long-term employment;
• contribute to promoting cultural heritage as an important element of the EU’s international dimension, building on the interest in partner countries for Europe’s heritage and expertise. Heritage plays a major role in several programmes in the area of external relations, mainly — but not exclusively — in the Middle East. The promotion of the value of cultural heritage is also a response to the deliberate destruction of cultural treasures in conflict zone.

Specific objectives are also laid down.

Measures: the proposal presents measures which will include information and promotion campaigns, events and initiatives at European, national, regional and local levels:

• conferences, events and initiatives to promote debate and raise awareness of the importance and value of cultural heritage and to facilitate engagement with citizens and stakeholders;
• information, education and awareness-raising campaigns to convey values such as diversity and intercultural dialogue using evidence from Europe’s rich heritage and to stimulate the general public’s contribution in heritage protection and management and more generally in achieving the objectives of the European Year;
• sharing of experience and good practices of national, regional and local administrations, and other organisations, to disseminate information about cultural heritage;
• undertaking studies and research and innovation activities and the dissemination of their results on European or national scale.

Coordination at national level: each Member State shall appoint a national coordinator responsible for organising its participation in the European Year. The coordinator shall ensure the coordination of relevant activities at national level.

Coordination at Union level: the Commission shall convene meetings of the national coordinators in order to coordinate the running of the European Year and to exchange information regarding its implementation at national and European level.

International cooperation: the Commission shall cooperate with competent international organisations, in particular with UNESCO and the Council of Europe, while ensuring the visibility of the EU’s participation.

Funding: co-financing at European level of activities in support of the European Year shall be in accordance with the applicable rules, and within the existing possibilities for priority setting on an annual or multiannual basis, to existing programmes, in particular the Creative Europe programme. Where appropriate, other programmes and policies, within their existing legal and financial provisions, may also support the European Year.

Monitoring and evaluation: by 31 December 2019, the Commission shall submit a report to the European Parliament, the Council on the implementation, results and overall assessment of the initiatives provided for in this Decision.

BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS: no additional funding is sought for the European Year. This initiative does not require additional EU budget. The flexibility for setting priorities on an annual or multiannual basis in the relevant programmes is sufficient to envisage an awareness-raising campaign on a scale similar to previous European Years.