Policy & Research Papers
One of the roles that the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, in its Article 19, assigns to UNESCO is to facilitate the collection, analysis and dissemination of all relevant information, statistics and best practices. Through the Policy & Research Series, UNESCO seeks to contribute to Information sharing and transparency on the diversity of cultural expressions and related themes. The aim is not only to supplement the information provided by the Parties themselves, thereby contributing to the overall monitoring of the Convention in specific areas such as trade, digital or artistic freedom, but also to offer recommendations to facilitate informed policy-making processes in the Convention’s different areas of application.
Two volumes have been published to date:
- Culture in Treaties and Agreements, Véronique Guèvremont and Ivana Ostašević. The study examines 59 bilateral and regional agreements concluded between 2005 and 2017. It highlights the different ways in which Parties have excluded cultural goods and services from trade agreements or granting them a particular status that recognizes their specificity.
- Culture in the Digital Environment, Octavio Kulesz. The study examines the impact of digital technologies on the diversity of cultural expressions in Spain and Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, paying particular attention to the book, music and film industries.
2
volumes published
2
volumes in preparation
In addition to the two volumes already published two research projects are being carried out and will be the subject of two new volumes:
- An impact study on the following four trade agreements: EU-Cariforum Economic Partnership Agreement, EU-Republic of Korea Free Trade Agreement, China-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement and Republic of Korea-Australia Free Trade Agreement. The two agreements to which the European Union is a signatory are supplemented by a Protocol on Cultural Cooperation, largely inspired by the 2005 Convention while the China-NZ FTA contains a cultural exemption clause and the ROK-Australia FTA has opted to use negative lists of commitments. The purpose of the research is to find out to what extent these different modalities have contributed to the goals of the Convention and in particular to achieve a more balanced flow of cultural goods and services between signatories and an increased mobility of their artists and cultural professionals, particularly through the introduction of preferential treatment measures.
- A research on artistic freedom in digital environment to identify the challenges artists face social media and digital platforms. The study will focus mainly on the monitoring and documentation of artistic freedom in the digital environment, the different forms of interference manifested by the different stakeholders, the legal and administrative obstacles that affect artists in particular, the role of international internet providers and the communities built through internet and social media.