Vergadering Raad voor Onderwijs, Jeugdzaken en Cultuur: 26-27 november (en)

The fact that 2009 is the European Year of Creativity and Innovation is apparent in the Council conclusions that are expected to be adopted when the Education, Youth and Culture Council meets in Brussels on 26-27 November. The agenda includes: • Promoting the creativity of children and young people and their access to culture • The designation of 2011 as the European Year of Volunteering • Media literacy and tools to measure it • Online accessibility of Europe’s cultural heritage - a policy debate

Promoting the creativity of children and young people and their access to culture

Children and young people will be the practitioners and users of culture in the future, and the way they use culture and media places new demands on decision-makers, government agencies and institutions. This is one of the main messages of the Council conclusions on promoting a creative generation. The proposal, which has received broad support from the Member States, comes from Sweden and means that, for the first time, the perspectives of children and young people will be highlighted in strategies concerning culture and media at EU level. The aim is also for the perspective of children and young people to be included as one aspect in assessing project applications within the next generation of framework programmes in the area of culture and media. The Council conclusions highlight the involvement and creativity of young citizens, the responsibility of institutions for developing their interaction with children and young people and the importance of cooperation between the culture and education sectors.

The conclusions are a follow-up of the conference ‘Promoting a creative generation - children and young people in the new culture and media landscape’ which took place in Göteborg on 29-30 July 2009. The conference gathered over 300 experts, cultural workers and decision-makers for the exchange of experience and good examples concerning the culture and media habits of children and young people.

Designation of 2011 as the European Year of Volunteering

At the Council meeting the ministers are to take a decision on the Commission’s proposal for 2011 to be designated the European Year of Volunteering. The objective is to encourage and support voluntary work in the EU by means of various promotion measures. It is important, for example, to recognise the role of voluntary work in society and to enable its organisers to improve its quality. This could be achieved through research and the exchange of experience in the area and dissemination of the knowledge acquired.

Through intensive negotiations with the Member States and the European Parliament, Sweden has made it possible to take a decision on the matter already at this Council meeting. This will place the voluntary sector, Member States and the European Commission in a good position to now start preparations for 2011.

Media literacy and the tools to measure it

The Council will also adopt Council conclusions on media literacy in the digital environment. These conclusions are in response to a recommendation from the Commission based on the need for society to meet rapid developments in the media by improving media literacy among citizens. The recommendation urges Member States to promote initiatives by the media industry in this area, to initiate a discussion on ways of including media competences in school work and to analyse and evaluate media literacy at national level.

The Council conclusions to be adopted welcome the Commission’s recommendation. They particularly emphasise the possibility of making use of formal and informal teaching structures in the different Member States and the importance of involving the media industry in strategies to increase media literacy. The Commission’s efforts to produce indicators and criteria that can be used for the analysis and evaluation of media literacy are also welcomed. The Council conclusions underline that strategies to increase media literacy must be based on a positive message, based on the benefits and potential of digital developments, both for the individual and society as a whole, but also the fact that different groups have different abilities and needs.

Online accessibility of Europe’s cultural heritage - a policy debate

Sweden has proposed a policy debate on the issue of a European agenda to make books and other works of culture more accessible electronically, against the background of Google’s project to scan books in the USA to make them digitally available. Discussions will include the challenges facing Europe with regard to creating better online accessibility for Europe’s cultural heritage, and the possible contents of a European agenda.

Digitisation is currently underway at different levels in the Member States. The initiative to build up the European digital library Europeana is part of a broader strategy to promote digitisation, electronic access and digital preservation in Europe. The Council will discuss key issues with regard to the digitisation of cultural works and how to protect the interests of right-holders, promote sound competition on the market and provide greater access citizens and researchers. The question what Member States and national cultural institutions can do to enable free access to important digitalised material via Europeana will also be discussed as well as how Member States and the EU can make it easier for private initiatives and public-private partnerships in this field.