AVEIRO CULTURE & TECH WEEK

8th Conference of the Culture Next Network

From 12th to 14th October, Aveiro 2027 hosted the 8th conference of the Culture Next network, an organization that joins former and current candidate cities to European Capital of Culture (ECoC) interested in formally joining a collective project dedicated to strengthening European programmes such as the ECoC and to innovation in cooperation mechanisms between cities and regions, cities and organisations, cities and artists.

The meeting’s programme was focused on the evaluation of the impacts of Culture on the social development of territories, with particular emphasis on the relationship between cultural practices and the improvement of health and well-being of the population.

By hosting this conference, Aveiro 2027 became a platform for contents sharing and networking between teams and experts during this week, namely with the New European Bauhaus conference – NEB Goes South, the recently created EIT for Culture & Creativity, the international meeting Tandem Europe, and the MESOC consortium, all of them also present in Aveiro during this period.

Participants also had the opportunity to meet the local cultural community and explore Aveiro Tech Week, through the events:

TECHDAYS AVEIRO – Building our future
Innovation prototyping event Aveiro MTF Labs – Ecosystem Living
CRIATECH – digital creativity and technology, a festival that gathers art, technology and heritage
PRISMA / Art Light Tech, a light festival held in public space.

Plans for the next two years of Culture Next were also made, its current projects were discussed and objectives as a lighthouse for cultural policy were be established.

There was time for informal conversations and also a moment to present each entity and the projects they develop, and those that are – or may come to be – related to the cultural programme of Aveiro 2027.

Culture Next is a network founded in 2017 by ten European cities (including Aveiro) current and former candidates for the title of European Capital of Culture (ECOC) with the mission to support cities in the implementation of culture-led urban development programmes and policies, taking advantage of the experiences, participatory processes and collaborations established during the preparation of the ECOC candidacy.

The following cities were present:

Amiens/France

Belfast/UK

Burgos/Spain