Recommendations for the Work Plan for Culture 2027-2030
This document outlines Culture Action Europe’s recommendations for the Work Plan for Culture of the Council of the European Union 2027-2030.
Culture Action Europe ran consultations with its members on the future Work Plan for Culture during the BEYOND Satellites in spring 2026. A further consultation with European cultural networks took place online on 1 June 2026. In total, around 120 Culture Action Europe members and network representatives participated in these consultations.
Members were asked two questions: which topics/issues/priorities need coordination among Member States between 2027 and 2030, and which national practices could be useful for other Member States to learn from. The participants of the Satellites described what is happening on the ground, what is and is not working. The consultations were grounded in principles of decentralisation, proximity, and contextual sensitivity.
Across all six regional gatherings and the networks consultation, the same problems emerged repeatedly: a sector under pressure from political shifts, funding cuts, shrinking civic and cultural space, precarious work, unequal access to European cooperation, and a public discourse that frames culture as discretionary or suspect, or views it mainly through the lens of profit. The consultations also sharpened several cross-cutting needs: secure cultural infrastructure, a better balance between project and operational support, recognition of socially engaged and community practice, and stronger integration of culture across other policy areas.
Image source: General Affairs Council – June 2026 – copyright: European Union, 2026.