Report of the parallel session on 'Culture within multicultural cities – Agenda 21 for culture' at UCLG’s second world congress, Jeju 28th October to 1st November 2007.
The congress proved the growing importance of cultural affairs in the international agenda. Issues related to intercultural dialogue, cultural diversity, local development and cultural policies appeared in several plenary and parallel sessions. The role of parallel session 'Culture within multicultural cities – Agenda 21 for culture' was to 'rethink the role of culture in local governance'. The report notes: 'many cities consider culture is an emerging topic in local policies for development, which are usually based on the virtuous triangle of sustainability (economic growth, social inclusion, environmental balance), but that are 'squared' by culture, which brings values (creativity, critical knowledge, memory, rituality...) that are crucial for democracy and citizenship. At a global level, international organisations have launched important initiatives related to culture, including UNESCO’s Convention on Cultural Diversity (2005), the Alliance of Civilisations (2006), and the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue (2008)'.
The session was chaired by the president of UCLG’s committee on culture, Mr Jordi Martí, Councillor for culture of Barcelona City Council.

http://www.agenda21culture.net/docs/report_culture_jeju.doc