From 4 to 7 June 2025, Culture Action Europe (CAE) held its annual conference in Turin, Italy, under the title “Beyond 2025: Being Many.” Artists, cultural practitioners and cultural policy stakeholders from across Europe came together to discuss the role of culture in times of social, political and ecological transformation. At the heart of the conference was the question of how cultural actors can assume shared responsibility and strengthen democratic, inclusive and solidaristic structures.
The programme combined keynotes, panel discussions and interactive workshops with so-called City Sessions, which took place at various locations across Turin. These smaller discussion formats enabled in-depth exchanges on topics such as cultural participation, governance, youth engagement and advocacy.
Alongside the conference, the Culture Action Europe Members Forum was came together. Among other things, members engaged in a strategic exchange on the future direction of the network and on current developments in European cultural policy. Important discussions focused, for example, on joint reflections regarding the planned new “Culture Compass” of the European Union. In addition, new candidates from the Culture Action Europe network introduced themselves in view of the upcoming board elections.
On the margins of the event, the so-called German Hub of CAE also met, bringing together CAE members from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The focus was on exchanging views on shared cultural policy concerns and further strengthening networking within the German-speaking region.
“Beyond 2025: Being Many” was organised by Culture Action Europe in cooperation with its member organisations Fondazione Fitzcarraldo ETS and Fondazione Club Silencio. The conference was held under the patronage of the Regione Piemonte, the City of Turin and Fondazione Italia Patria della Bellezza ETS.