Brief | Spotlight on MONDIACULT 2025

UNESCO is unleashing the power of culture to achieve sustainable development

The world’s largest cultural policy conference, MONDIACULT was hosted by the government of Spain and took place in Barcelona from September 29 to October 1, 2025. The conference brought together ministers of culture from UNESCO member states, civil society representatives, artists and youth to establish the global cultural policy agenda for the coming years. Dialogue centred on six critical themes: cultural rights, digital technologies in the culture sector, culture and education, economy of culture, culture and climate action and culture, heritage, and crisis, with two cross-cutting focus areas on culture for peace and artificial intelligence.

Canadian Representation

Canada was represented at MONDIACULT through the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD) who advocated for integrating culture into sustainable development policies and emphasizing linguistic and cultural diversity alongside Indigenous knowledges. The Canadian Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (CDCE), who represent cultural sector companies, associations, and creative professionals, sent two delegates: Executive Director Marie-Julie Desrochers and Co-Chair Bill Skolnik to ensure Canadian perspectives inform global cultural policy development.

Outcomes and Calls to Action

The International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies (IFACCA) released Charting the Future: Culture as Our Compass to present eight recommendations including recognizing culture as essential to livable societies and foundational to policy frameworks, economic systems, and social ecosystems. The dossier is available in English, Spanish, French and Catalan.

Most significantly, UNESCO launched its first global report on cultural policies, revealing that while 93% of member states (mostly in the Global South) recognize culture in national development plans, and while cultural and creative industries contribute nearly 4% of global gross domestic product (GDP), substantial inequalities persist in funding, access and participation. Alongside a new Framework for Cultural Statistics, UNESCO’s report on cultural policies advocates for a standalone Sustainable Development Goal dedicated to culture in the post-2030 agenda, embedding cultural rights, heritage and diversity within sustainable development.

Positions expressed at MONDIACULT 2025 are aligned with longstanding Canadian advocacy for recognizing culture’s intrinsic and instrumental value in policy frameworks. For our arts, culture and heritage sectors, this conference reinforces the imperative to position cultural policy as central to social, economic and environmental sustainability. The official outcomes document is publicly available and outlines Ministers’ and Authorities’ collective commitment to strengthening cultural policies and institutions and the cultural and creative sectors for the global public good.