Revisit the live-streamed public Panel Discussion: “Europe and the Value of Culture for International Relations.” The panel discussion, held as a public event at SPUI25, is organised within the framework of the ValEUs Workshop “Future Pathways of Culture in International Relations”, convened by Claske Vos (11–12 February 2026, Amsterdam), and is now available as part of our Civil Society Debates series.
Speakers:
- Lars Ebert (Culture Action Europe)
- Lynn Fu (Arts Access Shanghai)
- Aya Kasasa (EUNIC’s Spaces of Culture)
- Claske Vos (University of Amsterdam)
- Katz Laszlo, Moderator, The Europeans Podcast
About the Event
In its most recent Cultural Compass, the EU argues that the value of culture should be recognised as a key strategic pillar of EU external action. This is based on a firm belief that culture will help the EU to protect and promote diversity, strengthen its global role, and deliver tangible benefits for societies worldwide. Yet this belief in the value of culture for international relations has become increasingly challenged. How to strategically invest in culture in a global context marked by ongoing conflict, geopolitical power play, and ‘new’ imperialism?
During this round table we will provide a brief historical overview of the EU’s engagement in international cultural relations and engage with a diverse group of speakers in a round table to discuss the challenges the EU faces today, its key dilemmas, and where its greatest potential lies. How do these different actors see Europe’s role — and what needs to change for culture to truly contribute to a more just and peaceful world?
ValEUs Civil Society Debates
The ValEUs Project has organised a series of panel discussions with civil society organisations discussing European values and EU foreign policy, engaging a global audience (live stream) and local participants in the US, Poland, Mexico, Morocco and Ukraine. NGO’s, social movements, citizen organisations and activists are invited to share their thoughts about climate change, democracy, trade agreements, colonialism, and conflict. In these debates, contestations and ambivalences of European foreign policy are exposed, allowing for the exploration of new avenues to counteract these contestations and ambivalences.
