Chief Executive of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage Lewis Holden, will lead a delegation from the New Zealand government attending the Edinburgh International Culture Summit from 10 to 12 August 2014, held at the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh.

Chief Executive of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage Lewis Holden, will lead a delegation from the New Zealand government attending the Edinburgh International Culture Summit from 10 to 12 August 2014, held at the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh.

The delegation will join Culture Ministers and leading arts and culture experts from around the world to discuss substantial, global issues of mutual interest, during the largest annual celebration of arts in the world – Edinburgh’s summer festivals.

The New Zealand delegation will take part in a series of discussions and debates around the theme ‘Culture – A Currency of Trust’.  This theme reflects the Summit’s belief in the capacity of the arts and culture to build bridges of understanding between nations, states and cities.

The programme features a stellar line-up of speakers including Benjamin Barber from the City University of New York, Nandi Mandela, business woman and grand-daughter of Nelson Mandela; and Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO.

Other speakers include Simon Anholt, the world’s leading authority on national image & reputation, and a world leader on ultra-wide scale human engagement. Danilo Santos de Miranda, Sao Paolo Director of Brazilian arts funding agency Serviço Social do Comércio (SESC), will talk on the success of the SESC Funding Model, and Australian-based poet, philosopher and artist Paul Carter will present on ‘Place-making and Storytelling’. 

The Summit will facilitate a wide-ranging conversation across three interlinked topics:

• Values and Measurements: the principles of valuing culture and how to measure that value.
• Cities and Culture: the city as a locus of cultural innovation and participation.
• Advocacy and Identity: how culture and cultural diversity are best sustained, promoted and protected.

Speaking in advance of his visit to the 2014 Summit, Lewis Holden said:

“The Edinburgh International Culture Summit will be an opportunity to build international relationships, and to engage in worthwhile discussions that highlight the value of culture both intrinsically and in terms of its contribution to wider social and economic objectives. The Summit takes place in one of the world’s foremost cities for the arts, and we are delighted that so many New Zealand artists have been invited to participate in the Edinburgh festivals this year.”

The New Zealand at Edinburgh season will feature more than 200 New Zealand artists in seven of the Edinburgh festivals. This is the first time such a large group of leading New Zealand actors, dancers, musicians, writers, Maori performing artists, spoken word and visual artists has been invited to perform.  The season, led by Creative New Zealand, aims to showcase New Zealand arts and culture on the world stage, engage with international arts practitioners and to develop new audiences, buyers and networks.

Commenting ahead of the Summit, Sir Jonathan Mills, Director of the Edinburgh International Festival and Programme Director of the Edinburgh International Culture Summit, said:
“The Edinburgh International Culture Summit is a forum in which artists and leaders come together to discuss substantial, global issues of mutual interest, during the Edinburgh International Festival.  It is a great pleasure to welcome politicians and practitioners from across the globe to Edinburgh at its most diverse and dynamic – to a wonderful city, in ‘full Festival’ flow.

“The Summit exists to make the argument for culture and the arts as an essential enlargement of the circumstances in which we imagine our lives.

“I wish you well in your deliberations at the Edinburgh International Culture Summit, and hope that your time in Scotland is inspiring and rewarding.”

Media Release: Edinburgh International Culture Summit