Representatives from EUNIC member organisations came together in Brussels for our biannual General Assembly – a moment to convene the membership live and in person, to reconnect, and to welcome several new colleagues to the network. This General Assembly provided the opportunity to share important EUNIC programme updates, develop our strategic framework for the next four years, and explore key challenges and opportunities in the field of international cultural relations.

International cultural relations with the new EU leadership

The General Assembly delegation was joined in conversation by:
• MEP Nela Riehl, Chair of the Culture and Education Committee at the European Parliament
• Georg Haeusler, Director for Culture, Creativity and Sport at DG Education and Culture, European Commission
In discussion with our member, Eugene Downes, Cultural Director at the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and member of the Expert Group on EU governance in international cultural relations

Our panellists were joined by other EUNIC members exploring the policy opportunities presented by the new European Parliament and Commission and how we can lead, shape, and deliver the next steps of the EU’s commitments to international cultural relations.

I am here to learn from you, to build relationships with you. I believe we need to work together.

MEP Nela Riehl, Chair of the Culture and Education Committee, European Parliament

This is an exciting period of change. We have a new Commissioner, with culture and education at the centre of the portfolio.

Georg Haeusler, Director for Culture, Creativity and Sport, DG EAC, European Commission

Enhanced opportunities for cultural relations in Sub-Saharan Africa

The European Spaces of Culture programme has been recognised by the European Commission as an instrument to deliver part of a new Africa-Europe Partnerships for Culture programme from DG International Partnerships, launching in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2025.

Whether already active in the region or exploring future partnerships, this new programme presents our members exciting opportunities to strengthen cultural relations in the region, expand partnerships with civil society and African actors, and advance our ongoing commitment to fair collaboration.

For DG INTPA, this is a great opportunity to work with EUNIC, to work on balanced partnerships including EU Delegations in the region. European Spaces of Culture has developed a great model, and we want to take it further as part of a bigger programme.

Alice Fracchia, European Commission, Directorate-General for International Partnerships

Continued and enhanced cooperation with Ukraine

Six months on from our last General Assembly in Bucharest, where we outlined several avenues of collaboration with Ukraine, we were joined by Volodymyr Sheiko, Director General of the Ukrainian Institute. He shared insights into the evolving situation for the Ukrainian cultural sector and the latest developments regarding activities relevant to EUNIC and its members.

At EUNIC, we are building on our existing partnerships with the Ukrainian Institute in a number of ways:
• The new edition of the EUNIC Ukraine Fund, now supporting Ukraine’s cultural presence in new priority countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America
• The EUNIC Mobility Scheme, with visits to Lviv and Kyiv in the pipeline – a unique opportunity to support knowledge-sharing between Ukraine and the rest of Europe
• Mainstreaming Ukrainian perspectives and expertise in our EUNIC community of practice, for example, through our recent Knowledge Sharing Workshop on Decolonising Ukrainian Cultural Heritage

Convening leadership on sustainability and climate action

As a network, we are committed to mainstreaming climate action into the field of cultural relations. Michelle Sun from the EUNIC team presented the resources in the EUNIC Sustainability Toolkit, including the Glossary, FAQs, How to Get Engaged, Communications, and KPIs.

EUNIC members joined the discussion to share their commitments and strategies on sustainability as we explore how, as a network, we can unite leadership and drive meaningful progress on this issue in the years ahead.

It is essential to combine an activism approach with long-standing strategic leadership from our institutes.

Hanna Lämsä, The Finnish Cultural and Academic Institutes, EUNIC Board Member

EUNIC governance topics

The General Assembly was also an opportunity to address important governance topics, such as the change of representation for the Estonian membership, which will pass from the Estonian Institute to the Estonian Ministry of Culture.

In the current context especially, it is important to have members that are very involved... so having another active member from the Eastern part of Europe is valuable also at global level.

Liviu Jicman, Romanian Cultural Institute, EUNIC President

This session also saw the unanimous re-election of EUNIC Board member Carmen Noguero Galilea, Secretary General at the Instituto Cervantes, who rejoins the Board of Directors for another term of two years.

Engaging in the institutional life of EUNIC has offered me a more comprehensive understanding of the importance of the international cultural relations approach in a changing world, where our cultural centres have to face new and more compelling challenges.

Carmen Noguero Galilea, Instituto Cervantes, EUNIC Board Member

EUNIC programme updates

The EUNIC team shared updates with members on EUNIC programmes, including recent developments and plans for the EUNIC Mobility Scheme for 2024–2025, as well as the legacy, developments and evolutions of European Spaces of Culture projects.

The EUNIC Cluster team shared insights from the recent Europe Regional Cluster Seminar in Warsaw and updates on the cluster roadmap. They also shared the results of the Cluster Fund 2024 selection process, including insights from this year’s jury members. Members committed to additional funding for this year's call, resulting in the selection of two more projects that had been placed on the reserve list by this year's jury members.

Elaborating the new EUNIC strategic framework

Building on the work carried out during the last General Assembly, in several small breakout groups, representatives from EUNIC members reviewed and discussed the draft version of the proposed EUNIC strategic framework for the next four years. Each breakout group, led by a EUNIC Board member, explored how members identified with the overall vision and direction of travel in the proposed framework. Colleagues had the opportunity to highlight elements they wished to be revisited or emphasised.

We thank all of our members and partners for contributing to another successful General Assembly. We look forward to bringing together the heads of our network at our next General Assembly on 18 and 19 June in Amsterdam, hosted by our colleagues at DutchCulture.

Here is a short General Assembly wrap up of key take aways for EUNIC clusters around the world.