Culturelink / Institute for Development and International Relations and the Centre for Democracy and Law Miko Tripalo have the great pleasure of inviting you to the international conference on Cultural Diversity, Civil Society and International Cultural Cooperation, to be held on 3-4 June 2013 in Zagreb, Croatia.
The conference is organized jointly by Culturelink/IRMO and the Centre for Democracy and Law Miko Tripalo, in cooperation with the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe (Venice). The aim of the conference is to analyze cultural diversity as the principal challenge of our time. The integration of cultural diversity into a wide framework of public policies, not only cultural ones, gives a new impetus to the international community in approaching its fundamental goals - peacebuilding and development, conflict prevention, democracy and human rights.
Cultural diversity is a source of creativity and innovation for development. UNESCO's Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which was adopted by the UNESCO General Conference in 2005, will be at the centre of the Conference programme. The Convention advocates changes in international cooperation which will contribute to the bridging of the development gap and to the reduction of dependency in the world through the establishment of development partnerships. The Convention aims to foster cultural interaction and dialogue, and to establish innovative approaches towards international cooperation.

The Conference will be structured in four thematic round tables:
1. Integrating Cultural Diversity in Sustainable Development Policies;
2. Promoting Cultural Policies;
3. Strengthening the Diversity of Cultural Expressions;
4. Promoting Mobility and Engaging Civil Society.

Today, many countries in the world have coalitions for cultural diversity representing professional cultural and artistic civil society organizations. The coalitions operate through institutions, advocating the importance of culture and the promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions, as formulated in UNESCO's Convention, and having an eye on broader development issues. The Conference will also focus on the following question: Does civil society in Southeast European countries have an interest in the creation of coalitions for cultural diversity in the region?

The conference agenda will be posted on Culturelink's website by 10 May 2013. For the programme and participation registration form please visit www.culturelink.org/conf/culdev.