The 47-nation Council of Europe is today launching a new statistical tool to help decision-makers see where changes in cultural policy can best help to strengthen democracy.
“Experts have thought for a long time that there are strong links between people taking part in cultural activities and aspects of democracy such as individual freedoms, political participation and transparency,” said Council of Europe Director General for Democracy Snežana Samardžić-Marković.
“For the first time, we have brought all the relevant data together to help researchers and policy-makers look at the statistical relationships between different aspects of culture and democracy, and to work out where changes in cultural policy and investment can best help to support democracy.”
The Indicator Framework for Culture and Democracy has been developed by the Council of Europe – together with the Hertie School of Governance, the European Cultural Foundation and various national authorities – in response to a request from Council of Europe member states.(more...)