EU and international cooperation in arts and culture

Culture and the audiovisual arts in the European Union

The Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (Article 167 of the TFEU) outlines the union's objectives and authority in the area of culture. According to the treaty, "the Union shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common cultural heritage to the fore".

In practice, the EU strives to also ensure the operating conditions for the film and audiovisual industry, the publishing industry as well as the music and cultural industries to ensure that the European creative industries based on these are internationally competitive.

The Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (Article 167 of the TFEU) outlines the union's objectives and authority in the area of culture. According to the treaty, "the Union shall contribute to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common cultural heritage to the fore".

The Union only has the authority to support and supplement the authority of the Member States. Additionally, Article 167(4) provides that "the Union shall take cultural aspects into account in its action under other provisions of the Treaties, in particular in order to respect and to promote the diversity of its cultures".

The Creative Europe Programme is the key instrument for the funding of the European community's cultural activities.

The Creative Europe programme (2021-2027) consists of policy approaches involving culture, media and cross-sectoral strands. The culture strand advocates European cooperation and mobility, the media strand aims to reinforce European audiovisual production and markets, and the cross-sectoral strand promotes innovative cooperation. Funding is allocated on the basis of the annual call for proposals. Project applications are submitted to the Commission.

In Finland, the Finnish National Agency for Education and the Finnish Film Foundation work together as the contact point for Creative Europe. They help applicants apply for funding.

Links:

Creative Europe 2021-2027 – Finnish National Agency for Education

Creative Europe programme - Mediadesk

The Structural Funds and other EU funding programmes, such as Horizon, also provide funding for the cultural industries. The purpose of promoting the Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture is to support creativity and the mobility of artists, to develop intercultural dialogue and to strengthen the cultural and economic significance of the arts.

The EU's Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council handles matters related to culture and the audiovisual arts. Matters related to the Culture and AV Ministerial Council are prepared by the council's working groups, the Committee on Cultural Affairs, and the AV working group.

The agenda of the Council and the Committee on Cultural Affairs are impacted by the multiannual Work Plan for Culture (2023-2026), the priorities of the Presidencies and the issues raised by the Commission. The four priorities of the Plan are:

1) artists and cultural professionals: empowering the cultural and creative sectors;
2) culture for the people: enhancing cultural participation and the role of culture in society;
3) culture for the planet: unleashing the power of culture;
4) culture for co-creative partnerships: strengthening the cultural dimension of the EU external relations.

Coordination of EU matters

Finland’s system for coordinating EU affairs aims to ensure that Finland can present a coordinated position in line with Finland’s general EU policy on any issue under consideration in the European Union at any stage of the process. The Government Secretariat for EU Affairs is responsible for ensuring the coordination of EU affairs and the smooth functioning of the coordination system.

The system for coordinating EU affairs consists of

• competent ministries,
• sub-committees on EU affairs,
• Committee for EU Affairs and
• Ministerial Committee on EU Affairs.

Sub-committees on EU affairs

The Committee for EU Affairs has appointed 36 sector-specific sub-committees, which provide the foundation for public officials to prepare EU affairs. The chairperson and secretary of each EU affairs sub-committee usually represent the competent ministry.

The sub-committees can convene in a restricted or extended composition. The restricted composition includes public officials from the competent ministries, and representatives of other ministries and government agencies. The extended composition also includes representatives of various interest groups and stakeholders. In addition, each sub-committee has representatives from the Government EU Affairs Department at the Prime Minister’s Office and the Government of Åland. The sub-committees meet as necessary.

The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for the sub-committee for Culture and Audiovisual Affairs (EU-31), which consists of representatives from the Government Secretariat for EU Affairs, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Finance, the Government of Åland, the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, the Finnish National Agency for Education, the Finnish Heritage Agency, the National Audiovisual Institute, the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities, the Finnish Film Foundation, The Finnish Broadcasting Company, Audiovisual Producers Finland, the Finnish Chamber of Films, Finland Festivals, the Finnish Association of Architects (SAFA), the Union of Finnish Writers, the Finnish Publishers Association, the Finnish Musicians' Union, the Finnish Actors Union, the Association of Finnish Theatres, the Trade Union for Theatre and Media Finland, the Association of Finnish Symphony Orchestras, the Finnish Museums Association and the Finnish Artists' Association.

Inquiries: Sub-committee for Culture and Audiovisual Affairs (EU-31): Director General Riitta Kaivosoja, Chair; Iina Berden, Ministerial Adviser, Secretary and Laura Mäkelä, Senior Ministerial Adviser for Cultural Affairs, Secretary.

Email: [email protected]

International cooperation

The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for the coordination of Finland's international cooperation in arts and culture with and within the following organisations: UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the Nordic Council of Ministers and the Nordic Culture Fund, the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS), the Arctic Council, the Barents Euro-Arctic Council and their cultural bodies as well as their neighbouring areas.

The Council of Europe is a European intergovernmental forum for broad-scoped cultural policy discussions and measures. The council's European Cultural Convention establishes the framework for cooperation in arts and culture as well as cultural heritage. An effort has been made to highlight culture and cultural policy via such things as national studies and theme analyses in cultural policy.

The Council of Europe has three conventions related to the cultural environment and heritage as well as recommendations on special issues. The conventions cover such things as architectural and archaeological heritage and landscapes.

The recommendations cover the cataloguing, utilisation, revitalisation and integrated protection of cultural heritage, industrial and technological heritage, urban space and culture, rural building heritage, as well as questions concerning the skills needed for the conservation of cultural heritage. Additionally, recommendations include commentary on e.g. architectural heritage, the effects of pollution, the relation between tourism and cultural heritage and cultural heritage education.

Nordic cooperation emphasises cultural cooperation between the Nordic countries, the visibility of the Nordic countries within the European Union and cooperation with neighbouring areas. Cultural cooperation is based on the agreement concerning cultural co-operation signed by the Nordic countries.

Matters that are within the Ministry of Education and Culture's administration are discussed in the Nordic Council of Ministers for Culture and the Committee of Senior Civil Servants for Nordic Cultural Co-operation. Cooperation is carried out in areas in which the Nordic countries have common interests or challenges and in which cooperation improves the effectiveness of development.

The Nordic Culture Fund supports broad-scoped Nordic cultural cooperation. The fund is situated in Copenhagen, Finland actively participates in its activities, in addition to which Finland has a bilateral culture fund with each of the Nordic countries. The Nordic Culture Point coordinates the Nordic Council of Ministers for Culture's Culture and Art Programme, the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture as well as NORDBUK's grant programmes.

• Nordic Co-operation - Norden
• Nordic Culture Fund
• Nordic Culture Point

The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for regional cooperation in the Northern Dimension's policy and in the Council of the Baltic Sea States and the Barents Euro-Arctic Council.

The main emphasis of regional cooperation in the Baltic Sea region is the strengthening of the region's culture as well as development of cultural heritage and cultural tourism.  In the Barents region the status of culture in regional development is strengthened through dialogue between the creative industries and cultures. The Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture develops the networking possibilities, internationalisation and competitiveness of actors in the creative industries. 

The Cultura Foundation supports the integration of Russian speaking immigrants through art and culture and works to support the study of the Russian language and Russian culture by Finns.

• Council of the Baltic Sea States
• Barents Euro-Arctic Council
• Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture
• Cultura Foundation

Finnish Cultural and Academic Institutes

The Finnish Cultural and Academic Institute network have the common objective to increase the recognition of Finnish culture, art and science in the target countries and promote cultural exchange and cooperation as well as field-specific research and teaching in the countries in question.

The institutes are non-governmental bodies and each institute is maintained by a foundation. Each institute's purpose and tasks are outlined in the responsible foundation's rules. The activities of academic institutes emphasize the promotion of science and research, but the institutes also organize cultural programmes.

The Ministry of Education and Culture admits annual operating grants to the foundations that maintain the institutes. The ministry also holds information exchange negotiations with the foundations and institutes.

The Finnish Cultural Institutes are located in Paris, London, Copenhagen, Brussels, Tallinn, Berlin, Stockholm, Madrid, Oslo, New York and Budapest.

The Finnish Academic Institutes are located in Rome, Athens, Tokyo and the Middle East.

In addition to institutes that operate abroad, the Swedish-Finnish Cultural Centre, which promotes cultural interaction between Finland and Sweden, is situated in Hanasaari, Espoo.

• Finnish Cultural and Academic Institutes