Press release no.: 100505_PR1008
11 May 2010
Officials from the Culture, Education and Foreign Affairs ministries of the ASEM member countries should coordinate better to promote cultural cooperation in a more comprehensive and integrated way, according to participants of the recently concluded Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Workshop on Enhancing ASEM Visibility through Cultural Activities.
Given that cultural diplomacy today is more about people-to-people activities, multilateral projects and building long-term relationships among various groups, the workshop highlighted the importance of activating existing networks of professionals and facilitating the establishment of new ones. This was particularly important in Asia, where networking across borders within the cultural sector is less developed than in Europe. NGOs and associations can play an important role in promoting mutual understanding by actively assisting to build up such networks.
Participants also welcomed the key role played by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) as a facilitator of cultural interactions between Asia and Europe. ASEM governments should continue to support the online platform Culture360.org, managed by ASEF, which can become a highly effective tool for ASEM cultural cooperation, connecting millions of cultural practitioners and raising awareness of the ASEM informal dialogue process.
These and other recommendations will be submitted to the 4th ASEM Culture Ministers’ Meeting in Poznan, Poland (7-9 September 2010), and to the ASEM 8 Summit in Brussels, Belgium (4-5 October 2010).
The Workshop took place in Ha Long City, Quang Ninh Province in Viet Nam on 28-29 April 2010. It was a joint initiative by Viet Nam, Hungary and ASEF. It brought together over 100 participants from ASEM countries, including senior officials, NGO representatives and other cultural experts, as well as ASEF, UNESCO in Viet Nam and representatives from Australia and Russia.
For more details on the ASEM Workshop on Enhancing ASEM Visibility Through Cultural Activities, please visit: http://asef.org/index.php?option=com_project&task=view&id=624
