Systematically integrating cultural specificities in the conception, measurement, and practice of development is imperative as it ensures the involvement of the local population and a desirable outcome of development efforts. Cultural industries alone account for more than 7% of the global GDP. Sustainable tourism, cultural as well as creative industries, and heritage-based urban revitalization are powerful economic subsectors that generate green employment, stimulate local development, and foster creativity. Local and indigenous knowledge systems and environmental management practices provide valuable insight and tools for tackling ecological challenges, preventing biodiversity loss, reducing land degradation, and mitigating the effects of climate change. In the transition to green societies, dialogue and tolerance will be key for mutual understanding and the building of bridges among nations and countries, leading to a culture of peace, which is a prerequisite for sustainable development. In that context, we must make the most of the world’s cultural diversity, as it fosters development and social cohesion.
The United Nations recognizes the role of culture for development
- On 20 December 2010, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on culture and development, which emphasizes the important contribution of culture for sustainable development and for the achievement of national and international development objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
This represents a major breakthrough at the international level in so far as there is no explicit mention of culture in the MDGs. This new resolution will encourage stakeholders to more fully integrate the cultural dimension into development processes thereby ensuring their sustainability.
This resolution comes in the wake of the United Nations MDG Summit, which took place in September 2010. The outcome document adopted by the Summit explicitly recognizes the links between culture and development by insisting on the importance of culture as a factor of development and encourages international cooperation in the cultural field for the achievement of development goals. As a side event of the Summit, UNESCO organized, in collaboration with the African Union and the European Commission, a High Level Round Table for the purpose of raising awareness of the international community on this issue. Among the participants in the round table were the Heads of State of Senegal and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
For more information:
Resolution text adopted by the UN General Assembly
Outcome document of the MDG Summit, September 2010
Summit High-Level Round-Table on Culture for Development
The Power of Culture for Development (Brochure, PDF)
The Millennium Development Goals Achievement Fund (MDG-F)
