EFA’s Arts Festivals Summit 2018, including the 66th EFA General Assembly, EFFE MeetUp and the opening of the Slovenian Music Days, took place from 11th to 14th April in Ljubljana (Slovenia), organized by the Ljubljana Festival and held in Grand Hotel Union.
A three-day programme exceptionally rich in opportunities for networking, exchange, and inspiration was created in the green oasis of Ljubljana. Three days of meeting colleagues, information exchange and knowledge sharing were prepared, along with an insightful and enjoyable programme invited all to taste the fantastic food, Slovenian wine and visit the historic and cultural treasures of the city.
The Arts Festivals Summit’s theme is The [Herit]AGE of the ARTS – Audiences in the heart of the places. EFA members were offered a platform to highlight their historical and current role in their city and region, above all their role in taking responsibility for the heritage of the past and supporting the heritage of the future, bringing visitors and audiences to unknown places, literally and figuratively.
The Arts Festivals Summit 2018 brought together EFA members, The Festival Academy Alumni, EFFE Label recipients, EFFE Hubs and the EFFE International Jury as well as representatives from cities, national tourism boards, UNESCO, Chambers of Commerce, the European Commission as well as the Council of Europe.
The theme of the Arts Festivals Summit in Ljubljana was the heritage of art – the audience in the heart of cities (The [Herit] AGE of the ARTS – Audiences in the heart of the places). Within the framework of the EFA, the EFA announced a joint declaration with European cities, inviting mayors and festival creators to join forces and stress the importance of art and culture in community building.
In conjunction with the theme of cultural heritage, the EFA also included stakeholders from the tourism sector. Festivals brought together destinations and represent excellent content that the tourism industry can use to promote.
About the European Federation of Festivals (EFA):
The European Festivals Association (EFA) is an umbrella organization that brings together about 80 members of the association and 15 national festival associations and cultural networks, covering 2000 festivals from 40 countries.
The task of the European Federation of Festivals was to unite and represent its members all over Europe and the world by contributing to the artistic life of Europe. The EFA acts as the most important program for art festivals. Communication between festivals, public authorities and other stakeholders in art is central to the work of the EFA.
