Application Deadline: December 3rd 2021
At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has considerably weakened the creative sector and greatly disrupted the production and distribution of cultural goods and services, UNESCO is giving a new impetus to the UNESCO-Aschberg Programme for Artists and Cultural Professionals to support States and key actors in their efforts to promote the status of the artist and the diversity of cultural expressions. “The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the entire cultural ecosystem, and has further highlighted its fragility. As the recent UNESCO report on cultural and creative industries in the face of COVID-19 demonstrates, job losses in this area are conservatively estimated at 10 million worldwide, suggesting a rapid decline in employment that is profoundly affecting the livelihoods of creative workers”, stresses Ernesto Ottone Ramirez, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Culture.
The mission of the UNESCO-Aschberg programme is to improve the social and economic protection of artists, decent employment and the balanced circulation of cultural goods and services. This is a crucial issue, widely documented by the ResiliArt movement, launched by UNESCO in 2020, with more than 270 debates involving artists, policy makers and cultural organizations from 110 countries. These consultations highlighted the gap in legal, policy and regulatory framworks related to the status of the artist. They also reaffirmed the importance of the status of artists for economic growth, social cohesion and sustainable development. Such recognition has direct implications in terms of fair remuneration, access to social security and taxation, freedom of movement and artistic expression, etc.
Types of Eligible Activities
– Support the design or revision of laws, policies, measures, regulations, roadmaps, policy briefs or provisions through evidence-informed strategic planning workshops and thematic working groups facilitated by national or international experts, involving relevant sectoral departments (Health, Economy, Labor, Finance, etc.) as well as civil society;
– Public events restituting research findings or policy recommendations, and fostering ownership of relevant stakeholders over new policy or legal reforms;
Debates and technical discussions of case studies and (inter)sectoral issues related to the status of the artists and cultural professionals.
Modalities for Technical Assistance
UNESCO’s support is, in principle, mainly technical (e.g., through contracts, provision of experts, organization of consultation meetings, data collection and analysis, etc.).
Support can be decentralized to the applicant or to the relevant UNESCO Field Office for project’s implementation.
If needed, UNESCO will assign national and/or international experts to support the implementation of interventions.
In case of contractual agreement between UNESCO and the applicant, UNESCO will follow its own rules and regulations.
Depending on scope and themes of interventions submitted, UNESCO will assess the proposals and share comments with selected applicants in view of the finalization of the implementation methodology, timeline and budget.
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