Project
Forum Pécs - A Soul for Europe
Civil society and policymakers find new ways to work together in a sustainable manner
10 November 2007, Hotel Palatinus, Pécs, Hungary
Thanks to the efforts of a local civil society initiative and with the support of the European Capital of Culture Pécs 2010, a large number of actors from cultural initiatives in several South-East European countries and Turkey met with representatives of the city of Pécs, the European and the Hungarian Parliaments, the initiative A Soul for Europe (Berlin) and the Felix Meritis Foundation (Amsterdam). Among those represented at the meeting were Slovenia's Foreign Ministry, which will take over the EU Presidency in the first six months of 2008, the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe, Transparency International and the German Embassy.
Using Pécs as an example, the one-day meeting addressed the basic idea of A Soul for Europe: the irrefutable importance of culture and civil society for the future implementation of the ‘cultural project Europe'. At the same time, the event saw itself as a practical example of how civil society and policymakers need to find new ways to work together if the power of culture is to benefit the development of Europe across the board, in the business sector and foreign policy, in education and the social sector.
Organisers
The initiative "A Soul for Europe" in cooperation with the Felix Meritis Foundation Amsterdam, the European Capital of Culture - Pécs 2010 and various civil society initiatives in Pécs.
Video Documentation:
Welcoming addresses
Why the Forum Pécs- "A Soul for Europe"?
Civil society and the role of the city in building Europe
Europe as a cultural project
