“A Soul for Europe” Conference
Berlin, 17 November 2006

Sehr geehrter Herr Bundespräsident, Sehr geehrter Herr Bundestagspräsident, Sehr geehrter Herr Kommissionspräsident, Meine sehr verehrten Damen und Herren,

Ich komme gerne nach Berlin und nach Deutschland! It is important place and time for Europe. Brandenburger Tor is the symbol of the German and the European reunification. On 17 November 1989 “velvet revolution” started in Czechoslovakia. Quest for freedom and human dignity have been leading us all towards current unity.

It is good to be back after the ground-breaking Conference of November 2004. The process that was set in motion here in Berlin has put culture firmly on the table of the debate on our united Europe. In these years there are many discussions and questions about crisis in Europe or about future of Europe. There is a lot of apathy and scepticism around. I think it is the culture which can give decisive contribution to the European unity: values and political force.

‘A Soul for Europe’ has evidently brought to the fore a sentiment that was running like an undercurrent in various circles across the continent. It was loudly called for by former President of the Commission Jacques Delors. And before, by Robert Schuman, Europe’s Founding Father, this appeal was put into his famous message – book Pour l’Europe.

I congratulate the project’s initiators and organisers for that. The European Commission welcomes this process. I personally commend its vitality and I am happy to see that the Commission and other EU institutions are participating actively in it.

I have been asked to focus my speech of today on the intercultural dialogue. But I would first like to say a few words on the link between culture and the Lisbon growth and jobs agenda.

We have just published a study on the Economy of culture in Europe. I presented it to EU culture ministers at a Council meeting earlier this week.

This is a very interesting document. It highlights both the direct contribution of the cultural and creative sectors to the Lisbon Agenda (in terms of GDP, growth and employment), as well as the indirect contribution (links between creativity and innovation, links with the ICT sector, regional development and attractiveness).

By way of example, the cultural and creative sector represents 2.6% of European GDP (as opposed to 1.9% for the food, beverage and tobacco industries). It employs 5.8 million people (and this is a conservative estimate).

Our research confirms that the cultural and creative sectors have a significant impact on growth and jobs. We have to overcome the usual image of a dichotomy between economy and culture.

The EU should help to build an environment that stimulates creativity in our economies and societies. Creativity and innovation are essential for growth and competitiveness in the knowledge era. Let me add one thing in this respect. Support to the cultural industries is often perceived as an extravagant expense. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Culture is not a luxury; it is in fact an extremely sound investment.

Culture brings money!

Every euro spent on culture generates large returns in economic terms – as I said – but also in terms of employment, quality of life and social benefits.

Artists and cultural operators are – among other things – the critical conscience of our societies. A lively cultural scene helps us reflect on who we are, what keeps us together, where we want to go.

And we are already preparing the next step: an ambitious political Communication on Culture, which I will present in the first half of next year, under German Presidency.

Cultural operators and artists can contribute a great deal. One notable example is the “Civil Society Platform for Intercultural Dialogue”, which is just starting to take shape.

This is an initiative led by the European Forum for Arts and Heritage, the European Cultural Foundation, and the Network for European Foundations. I am glad also to see that the “Soul for Europe” will take part in this platform.

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Let me now move on to the Commission to organise 2008 as the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue.

I launched the idea as soon as I was appointed Commissioner for education and culture. My proposal quickly gathered consensus and it is now planned for 2008.

There are plenty of good reasons why the Union should work on intercultural dialogue; let me give you just two of them.

Firstly, building Europe has always meant integrating histories, value systems, and world views. There is a strong sense in which our process of integration has always been a dialogue between cultures.

The EU is traditionally committed to promoting cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue around the world.

The second reason why this is the time to focus on intercultural dialogue is that Europe’s cultural landscape has grown more diverse in the past few years as a consequence of its enlargements and of immigration.

It is now common for European cities – large and small – to host many different cultural, religious, and language communities. I think that diversity in unity is the best narrative for Europe in the XXI Century.

Unfortunately this new “richness” is not lived or viewed positively by all. I do not need to remind you of some of the worrying tensions in our societies.

If we are serious about building a peaceful and creative society for tomorrow we need therefore to build a culture of dialogue and understanding now. Future starts – as always – today.

The policy move is necessary and urgent, but it won’t be easy. That is why the intercultural dialogue became also one pillar within the new programme Culture 2007.

The Year of Intercultural Dialogue will try to address these challenges pursuing three overall goals:

• raising the awareness of European citizens and of those living in the Union;
• developing social and personal habits that will equip us for a more open and complex cultural environment;
• finally, intercultural dialogue is linked to a more political goal: creating a sense of European citizenship.

It is clear that intercultural dialogue is relevant not only within the EU but also in our relations with third countries.

Although the proposal is focussed on the territory of the EU, other countries will be associated, particularly our neighbours in the rest of Europe and around the Mediterranean, through our civil society dialogue with candidate countries, including cooperation with the Anna Lindh Foundation.

I want to stress that we recognise that ultimately intercultural dialogue is a bottom-up process. It is for this reason that the Commission wants to work with a wide array of partners: national governments, regional and local authorities, and of course civil society.

Indeed, we need to learn from the grass-roots. That is why we have asked civil society to send us their ideas for the initiatives which will be funded by us as part of the Year.

We believe that learning from best practices is essential. Indeed, next week, we will host a conference and exhibition in Brussels identifying good practices of projects funded by Community programmes. We are also launching a study on Member State approaches to intercultural dialogue, and the results should be available by next summer.

I often hear sceptical voices, doubting what we can achieve with a single Year. I understand these concerns. However I want to underline that the Commission wants this European Year to be the beginning, not the end of something; the start of a truly long-term, durable process that lasts well beyond 2008.

As of next year, all the policies under my responsibility will be used to promote dialogue between cultures, and the same will also apply to some of our external policies. It will remain a priority in years to come.

Indeed, let me remind you that the policies and programmes of the Directorate General for Education and Culture – for which I am responsible – have in fact been indirectly promoting intercultural dialogue for many years, even though we did not use the label as such in the past. Let me remind you of the:

• 1.5 million Erasmus students since 1987 (we hope for 3 million by 2012);
• The target of 3 million pupils involved in partnerships between 2007–13 in our Comenius programme for school exchanges;
• Hundreds of thousands of young people involved in our European Voluntary Service and youth programme;
• Thousands more citizens involved in our citizenship programmes, each year, including town twinning exchanges each year.

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The objective and the criterion of culture must be promotion and respect of human dignity. This is the first value which unites us. Relation to human dignity is actually a defining line in relation to humanity and civilizations. I believe that maintaining an open, peaceful and constructive dialogue among all the political, social, and cultural partners is absolutely essential.

In effect, I would like to put forward the claim that this permanent dialogue is the very proof of Europe’s living and sharing soul. Dialogue is not weakness; it is a sign of maturity. In dialogue 1 + 1 is more than 2, because it brings synergy – new knowledge, understanding, and relation. It is true in a family, in a community, nation, between nations.

Because indispensable values for any sustainable community – humanity and solidarity – are the functions, the products of a responsible, empathic human soul. To give a soul for Europe is very important, hence – as Jean Monnet said very wisely – “we are not building alliance of states, we integrate people”.

Thank you.