EMC Summer News 2020

Dear readers,

We still have fresh news from the European Council & the European Commission with the MME calls and we're glad to share our lastest publications: new podcast, the EAM in DE and our last Activity Report. Plenty to read & listen to for the summer! Your EMC Team

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"Culture: An Accelerator Under-Used?” – Side Event at UN High-Level Political Forum

The International Music Council and its fellow members of the Culture2030Goal campaign are pleased to announce a virtual Side Event as part of the official programme of the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF), on 13 July 2020, 12:00-13:30 NYC time. The speakers will tentatively include members of the Culture 2030 Goal campaign, UN agencies, Government representatives and parliamentarians.

This event comes in timely after the #CultureCovid19 Statement, launched with a webinar on 21 May 2020 and available in several languages on the #Culture2030Goal website, has been officially endorsed by H.E. Mr. Tijjani Muhammed-Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

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#Culture2030goal coalition members welcome un general assembly president’s endorsement of statement on culture and Covid-19

1 July 2020

Culture has a vital role both in the immediate response to COVID-19, and in planning for longterm sustainable development. This fact is at the heart of the statement by IMC and its fellow members of the #Culture2030Goal Coalition on Culture and COVID-19 launched on 21 May.

With the endorsement of this statement by His Excellency Mr Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President of the 74th UN General Assembly, there is a clear recognition at the highest levels of the need to give culture a more central role in decision-making, now and into the Decade of Action.

The #Culture2030Goal statement, originally signed by eight members of the coalition, and now with well over 200 supporters, makes the connection between culture, the COVID-19 pandemic, and long-term development planning.

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IMC Executive Board co-opts three new members

Paris 01.07.2020

Under the leadership of President Alfons Karabuda, the Executive Board of the International Music Council has co-opted three new members.
Patricia Caicedo (Colombia/Spain/Catalonia), Ghita Kaldi (Morocco/Senegal) and Maria Claudia Parias (Colombia) join the Executive Board in its task to steer the implementation of the roadmap adopted by members at the last IMC General Assembly held in Paris in September 2019.

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SHIFT Newsletter June 2020: Environmental Sustainability

SHIFT – Sharing Initiatives for Training is an Erasmus+ funded strategic partnership project, bringing together several cultural networks with the ambition to contribute to a better and more sustainable future as recognised in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SHIFT aims to develop training for cultural leaders on the topics of environmental sustainability, gender and power relations, inclusion, and cultural leadership.

Through bimonthly thematic newsletters, we hope to inspire you to join us in imagining a sustainable future for the arts and culture sector. The first SHIFT newsletter explores best practices of cultural organisations striving for environmental sustainability.

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EMC Online Workshop: Music & Sustainability

After having cancelled the European Forum on Music 2020 (EFM) – due to the Covid-19 crisis – the EMC has decided to put a series of events online to discuss with musical artists, policy makers and environmental experts how music activities can contribute to the protection of our environment. While the Covid-19 crisis puts enormous pressure on the music sector at large, it is clearer than before that any way out needs to put attention to environmental aspects.

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IMC ResiliArt : 5 Music Rights - More than Ever!

Paris 21 May 2020

The experience of music and music-making is a vital part of the everyday life of all people. It is a basic right for all people to express themselves and communicate through music.

In its holistic approach to music as an ecosystem, the International Music Council considers music as an art form, as a product and as a tool. We acknowledge the intrinsic value of music, enriching and inspiring those who engage in it. As an art form, music has contributed and continues to contribute immensely to the world’s legacy, building a rich heritage that preserves and celebrates the diversity of our cultural identities. Music can also serve as a tool that promotes individual development and brings change to many levels of society: it is a formidable unifier of people, a natural vehicle for social engagement and inclusion and a powerful agent for democratic values. Finally, music is involved in a variety of products that contribute to domestic and international trade, economic growth and job creation.

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Freedom of artistic expressions and creativity: more than ever!

Paris, May 18, 2020

“All persons enjoy the right to freedom of artistic expressions and creativity, which includes the right to freely experience or contribute to artistic expressions and creations, through individual or joint practice, to have access to and enjoy the arts, and to disseminate their expressions and creations.”¹

In 2018, IMC Music Rights Champion Ramy Essam, “the singer of the Tahrir Square” who has been living in exile in Northern Europe since 2014, released a new song and video called “Balaha”. IMC raised its voice when his lyricist Galal El-Behairy was arrested in Egypt and both faced charges that included being a member of a terrorist group, spreading false news, the abuse of social-media networks, blasphemy, contempt of religion and insulting the military. At that time, to preserve the safety of families, we had not publicised that other persons involved in the creation of the song and in its promotion had also been arrested, including Shady Habash, a young film director and photographer.

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