BackCulture Compass for Europe
Shaping the EU’s future through culture
The European Commission has launched a new strategic framework called the Culture Compass for Europe, designed to put culture at the heart of EU policy-making and to shape the future of cultural and creative life across Europe. The initiative aims to support artists and cultural professionals, promote cultural rights and democratic values, and enhance the contribution of culture to social cohesion, resilience, and economic competitiveness.
It provides a common orientation for EU action through four strategic priorities:
– Upholding and reinforcing European values and cultural rights.
– Empowering artists and cultural professionals and supporting people’s access to culture.
– Using cultural heritage and creativity to boost Europe’s competitiveness, resilience, and unity.
– Strengthening international cultural relations and partnerships.
The implementation is supported by policy tools as well as a set of flagship actions intended to guide implementation across policy areas:
– Joint Declaration “Europe for Culture – Culture for Europe”
– “State of Culture in the EU” report
– EU structured dialogue on culture
– EU Cultural Data Hub
The success of the Culture Compass depends on strong political commitment from EU institutions, Member States, and stakeholders from the culture and creative sector.
The Policy Area Culture of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region submitted its own response to the call for evidence regarding the Cultural Compass. In it, we welcomed the European Commission’s initiative to develop a “Culture Compass for Europe”, but argued that the current problem framing should place stronger emphasis on the societal role of culture. In particular, the feedback highlighted culture as a key driver of resilience, democracy, cohesion, and mental well-being, especially in times of crisis, and called for culture to be treated as a cross-cutting priority rather than an “add-on”. We also stressed the need for better governance alignment and stronger recognition of EU macro-regional strategies like the EUSBSR, as well as improved indicators and funding mechanisms that reflect culture’s broader social and economic value, including in digital transformation, inclusion, sustainability, and geopolitical disruption.
Check out the Cultural Compass at www.culture.ec.europa.eu/policies/culture-compass
Related content
New funding opportunities at Swedish Institute
26 February 2026
