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Policy Area Culture and Creative Sectors is one of 14 policy areas of the EUSBSR which was introduced as the EU's first macro-regional strategy in 2009.

The Baltic Sea Region has an outstandingly diverse and attractive cultural life and a cultural heritage of great value. The creative and cultural industries contribute to 4.2 % of Europe’s GDP. It is essential to promote BSR culture and creative industries and to showcase the BSR as a common cultural region in order to make the most of these assets. Culture, including creative industries, the arts

and the regionally linked cultural heritage are sources of common identity and shared values. Building on these treasures will boost the commitment of the region to the EUSBSR and to territorial cohesion. Recognizing culture as a resource for creativity and innovation by integrating the creative and cultural sector in the EUSBSR will simultaneously enhance its potential for economic growth and employment. Policy Area Culture contributes to the fullfilment of the following overall objectives of the EU Baltic Sea Strategy:

/ Saving the Sea

/ Connecting the Region

/ Increasing Prosperity

09/07/2026

A big thank you to DG Regio and DG MARE for two inspiring Macro-Regional Strategy Days in Brussels 🇪🇺

We were delighted to reconnect with our culture and tourism colleagues from across Europe's macro-regional strategies 🤝 and to showcase the BSR Cultural Pearls programme in the Networking Village ✨

The agenda was packed with engaging discussions on the future of cooperation between the EU Sea Basin and Macro-Regional Strategies, as well as shared challenges such as resilience, economic competitiveness and regional cohesion 🌍

It was wonderful to meet both familiar and new faces in the heart of the EU 💙 We are heading home inspired, with fresh ideas 💡, renewed connections 🤝 and a shared commitment to strengthening culture 🎭 as a driver of cooperation and resilience across our regions.

23/03/2026

📣 CALL FOR 2027 CULTURAL PEARLS OPENS

The BSR Cultural Pearls initiative proudly announces the opening of applications for the 2027 Cultural Pearls Title!

The call is a unique opportunity to strengthen the resilience and community cohesion of your city or town through culture and creativity.

💡 Building upon the success of three years of Cultural Pearls, applicants gain access to peer-learning opportunities, expert sessions and a regional network, guiding them in the development of their own Culture and Resilience Action Plan (CuReAP).

🏆 The BSR Cultural Pearls Title, awarded to the most convincing and successful CuReAPs, is a sign of recognition for your city or town – giving you international visibility and accelerating your growth.

📝 Ready to harness the power of culture? Applications for the pre-selection are open from March 16 until April 30.

11/03/2026

🌊 EUSBSR Annual Forum 2026: Resilience Edition – Register now! 📝

📩 PA Culture invites you to join one of the Baltic Sea Region’s largest cooperation events — the EUSBSR Annual Forum 2026, taking place 11–13 May in Tallinn, Estonia.

The 17th Forum will bring together governments, cities, policymakers, researchers, and civil society to tackle the region’s most pressing challenges through stronger cooperation, smarter coordination, and bold innovation.

The Forum aims to move beyond sector-based discussions and build stronger synergies across policy areas to shape a smart, secure, and resilient Baltic Sea Region.

🤝 Hosted by the City of Tallinn and organised with the CBSS Secretariat, the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Baltic Sea Strategy Point, with support from the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme.

🧩 Meet PA Culture in the Annual Forum Networking Village.

🔗 Visit the EUSBSR Annual Forum 2026 Portal and register today to help shape the future of our region: https://eusbsr.eu/annual-forum/

09/03/2026

📘 UNESCO launches the 4th edition of Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity

On 18 February 2026, UNESCO presented the fourth edition of its flagship Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity report at its headquarters in Paris, marking the 20th anniversary of the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions.

Drawing on data from more than 120 countries, the report assesses how governments are translating the Convention’s vision into concrete policy action. It explores emerging trends, persistent challenges and new opportunities across the cultural and creative industries — at a time when digital transformation and widening global inequalities are reshaping who can create, produce and access culture.

First published in 2015, and followed by editions in 2018 and 2022, the Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity series has become a key monitoring and advocacy tool supporting implementation of the 2005 Convention worldwide.

This fourth edition highlights how cultural governance is adapting to mounting pressures — and what policy responses are needed to ensure diversity of cultural expressions and artistic freedom remain at the heart of sustainable development.

The series is supported by the Swedish Government and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency through the UNESCO–SIDA programme Re|Shaping Policies for Creativity and Artistic Freedom.

03/03/2026

🇫🇮 Oulu is European Capital of Culture 2026!

In 2026, Oulu will hold the title of European Capital of Culture together with 39 municipalities across Northern Finland.

The programme brings together hundreds of creators from Finland and across Europe, featuring projects developed during the bid phase as well as initiatives selected through open calls. It is a truly collaborative effort led by the Oulu Cultural Foundation, supported by an 80-member regional delegation representing municipalities, educational institutions, public authorities, businesses, and cultural, tourism and leisure operators.

Among them is the Pohjois-Pohjanmaan liitto – Council of Oulu Region – EUSBSR Policy Area Tourism Coordinator, a close cooperation partner of PA Culture.

✨ The central ambition of Oulu2026 is “cultural climate change” – strengthening connections between people, bringing joy and creativity into everyday life, and expanding how we think, understand and listen to one another. Cultural climate change fuels innovation and generates ideas that shape the future.

📅 You can still become part of the journey! Propose your own event for the official Oulu2026 programme – applications are open until 30 September 2026.

🌊 The Baltic Sea Region will be strongly represented with European Capitals of Culture in the coming years:

2026 – Oulu, Finland

2027 – Liepāja, Latvia

2029 – Kiruna, Sweden and Lublin, Poland

Since its launch in 1985, the European Capital of Culture initiative has been awarded to more than 60 cities across Europe and beyond, celebrating cultural diversity, strengthening citizens’ sense of belonging, and demonstrating the transformative power of culture in urban development.

🎉 Join the adventure as culture and creativity take over Northern Finland in 2026!

19/02/2026

🎭 When Culture Wins, Europe Wins 🇪🇺

On 3 February 2026, the latest Annual Policy Conversation of Cultural Deal EU took place in Brussels, bringing together cultural leaders and EU policymakers to reaffirm a clear message: culture must be a core pillar of Europe’s future.

Launched in 2020 by Cultural Foundation, Action Europe, and Nostra, the Cultural Deal for Europe has mobilised hundreds of cultural actors in response to the profound impact of COVID-19 on Europe’s cultural and creative sectors.

With negotiations on the EU long-term budget (MFF 2028–2034), including Agora EU programme, as well as the EU’s new strategic framework for culture – the Culture Compass, 2026 is an important year,.

The Cultura Deal calls for:
👉 Europe’s democracy, sustainability, security, and competitiveness depend on investing in culture.
👉 At least 2% of the future EU budget should be dedicated to culture.

Europe’s democracy, sustainability, security, and competitiveness depend on its ability to defend shared values and freedoms - priorities that also resonate with the work of EUSBSR PA Culture in the revised Action Plan.

🔗 Learn more about the Cultural Deal for Europe at https://culturaldeal.eu/

11/02/2026

🌱 New Funding Opportunity: PSF 2026 Call

On 15 February 2026, the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) will launch a new call for applications under its Project Support Facility (PSF) 2026.
🗓 The deadline for applications is 31 March 2026.

💡 About the PSF
Established in 2012, the PSF provides co-financing of up to EUR 65,000 for small-scale projects across the Baltic Sea Region (BSR). The facility supports initiatives with the potential to grow into lasting networks, partnerships, and sustainable cooperation models beyond the project’s lifetime.

To be eligible, projects must:
✔ involve partners from at least three CBSS Member States
✔ demonstrate clear added value for macro-regional cooperation

Eligible applicants include national, regional, and local public authorities, NGOs, and other organisations based in the Baltic Sea Region.

🤝 What does the PSF support?
The facility fosters sustainable partnerships aligned with the CBSS’s three long-term priority areas:

🔹 Regional Identity
🔹 Safe & Secure Region
🔹 Sustainable & Prosperous Region

📌 Examples of supported activities include:

Developing and strengthening transnational cooperation

Exchange of good practices and mutual learning

Training and capacity-building initiatives

Engaging young people as future builders of the region

📊 Impact so far:
Between 2013 and 2025, the PSF supported 77 projects across the region, contributing to meaningful collaboration and regional development.

🔗 Learn more and apply: https://cbss.org/psf/psf-2026-call/

04/02/2026

📣 Call for Proposals | Up Grants 2026: Culture for Democracy

The European Network of Cultural Centres (ENCC) is launching a new edition of Up Grants, its microgrants programme focused on democracy, participation, and social transformation.

ENCC invites socio-cultural centres to submit projects that strengthen civic participation, foster dialogue in polarised societies, explore digital ethics, and act as spaces of cultural resistance in times of social, political, and environmental crisis.

✨ Up Grants 2026 supports innovative initiatives by offering funding, visibility, recognition, and opportunities for development. More than a collection of best practices, the programme serves as a platform to help projects grow and resonate beyond their local contexts.

🔍 Thematic strands:
1️⃣ Digital ethics and democracy
2️⃣ Dialogue in times of polarisation
3️⃣ Participation and cultural resistance

🗓 Deadline: March 15th, 2026 · 23:59 CET
🌍 Eligibility: ENCC members may apply. Non-member organisations may also apply if they qualify as socio-cultural centres (non-profit organisations or public bodies facilitating citizens’ active participation in socio-cultural and artistic activities).

👉 Submit your proposal and contribute to Culture for Democracy.

Picture generated by Canvas AI 🤖

22/01/2026

🎭🏛️ Arts and Democracy: What’s at stake today? - Online Event hosted by the Performing Arts Coalition

🌍 Europe’s democracy and shared values are under mounting pressure — from erosion within and disruptive forces from abroad. EU leaders increasingly acknowledge these risks, and culture is being positioned with new urgency as a key pillar of democratic resilience. The EU’s latest cultural strategy, Compass for Culture, places artistic freedom, cultural rights and cultural participation at the core of safeguarding democracy.

📄 In light of this, the Performing Arts Coalition and partners invite to an online event presenting their new study, Between Rhetoric and Reality: Cultural Rights, Artistic Freedom, and Democratic Resilience. This research examines the current landscape of freedoms, pressures and aspirations in the performing arts. The event will feature insights from sector representatives, reactions from EU policymakers from the BSR and beyond, and space for open exchange.

ℹ️ The Performing Arts Coalition (PAC) is a platform for European and international performing arts networks to collaborate on advocacy for the performing arts, conducting joint actions and research, exchanging knowledge, and pooling resources.

📥 Download now and read the research ahead of the meeting: https://www.ietm.org/node/32336

🤝 Join in to explore what it will take for culture not only to reflect Europe’s democratic values — but to actively defend and revitalise them.

🧑‍💻 More information & registration: https://www.ietm.org/en/meetings/pac-policy-event-arts-and-democracy-whats-at-stake-today

Text & Image by Performing Arts Coalition
IETM International network for contemporary performing arts

Address

Kursi 3
Tallinn
10415

Website

https://www.eusbsr-culture.eu/, https://eusbsr.eu/policy-area-culture/

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