ACCESS TO CULTURE
Access to culture is a human right. Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) states that “Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits”. This right was also indicated in Article 15 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966/1976).
In the Policy guidelines of the Civil Society Platform on Access to Culture (2009), it was stressed that “Access to culture is an essential right of all citizens, but becomes fundamental in the case of those with economic and social challenges such as young people and the elderly, people with disabilities and different minority groups”. However, it was also pointed out that “there is a notable gap and a lack of political and public debate on and between principles and commitments, and everyday practices of fostering access to culture“
In the “Recommendation on Participation by the People at Large in Cultural Life and their Contribution to It” (UNESCO, 1976), access to culture is defined as “concrete opportunities available to everyone, in particular through the creation of the appropriate socio-economic conditions, for freely obtaining information, training, knowledge and understanding, and for enjoying cultural values and cultural property”
There are a variety of factors that need to be taken into consideration when discussing access to culture. These include financial means and public spending, social integration, skills and education, geographical and social isolation, minority rights, cultural rights, and freedom of expression. These elements can significantly impact people's ability to access and enjoy culture and create barriers that prevent broad public participation in a rich cultural life.
A common and effective method for improving access to culture involves identifying and removing obstacles preventing individuals from participating. These barriers can take many forms, including physical obstacles that may impact disabled individuals, financial obstacles such as entrance fees or transport tickets, geographical barriers that may affect those living in rural areas, as well as intangible barriers such as cultural interests and life choices, linguistic barriers, institutional attitudes, and perceptions of cultural institutions as elitist. Addressing these obstacles is important to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to participate in cultural activities.
However, this is not enough. In the past, funding authorities and cultural institutions have focused on the supply side, but research results show that the issue of access and participation in the arts is more of a demand issue than a supply issue. Therefore, efforts to encourage audience development must focus on creating a demand for artistic and cultural production.
Comprehensive recommendations on improving access to culture, given in the “Policy guidelines of the Civil Society Platform on Access to Culture”, include: 1. Understanding the needs of all publics, through data collection, research and consultations, with the aim to improve policymaking in the field of access to culture; 2. Overcoming linguistic barriers, by means of language education and support to translation; 3. Supporting highly qualified professionalism, to ensure professional development and growth and, in turn, broaden the diversity of the cultural offer; 4. Improving funding and procedures, in order to facilitate access to funding for a larger group of artists and cultural professionals; 5. Advancing mobility and exchange, through mobility funding, spaces for encounters and exchange, and support to the diffusion of artistic processes and products; 6. Increasing access to new technologies to public and cultural actors, promoting the cultural use of new technologies and ensuring appropriate protection of creators’ and interpreters’ rights; 7. Recognition of the synergies between education and culture and support to such projects in all appropriate funding instruments – to increase the access to culture through education and the access to education through culture; 8. Positioning access to culture upstream and transversally in all cultural policy-making, through participatory policymaking and interdisciplinary policy working groups aiming to improve specific and general policies promoting access to culture; and 9. Raising awareness of the legal frameworks on access to culture in order to translate international commitments on access to culture into genuine policies.
Access to culture is the prerequisite for achieving other social values of culture. Council of Europe publication, 'Making culture accessible' (2010), stresses the role of access to culture in achieving social cohesion, safeguarding minorities' rights and freedoms and supporting the building of one's identity. Also, cultural diversity is impossible to achieve without universal access to cultural education, creation and participation. Thus, policies and initiatives to enhance access to culture are essential for building cohesive, inclusive and democratic societies. (PC)
See also: Participation; Equality; Democratisation of culture; Cultural democracy; Audience development; Diversity of audiences