9th World Summit on Arts and Culture | postponed to 2023

Due to the current travel restrictions related to the spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant impacting most of the regions across the world, the Swedish Arts Council has reached the difficult conclusion to postpone the 9th World Summit on Arts and Culture to 2023. The IFACCA Board and Secretariat fully support this decision and are committed to working with the Swedish Arts Council and partners to ensure safe and equitable global participation at the World Summit in Stockholm.

While we are disappointed that we must wait a little longer to meet in person, we hope that this date change will ensure we have the best chance of guaranteeing the presence of delegates from all regions of the world. Since its inception, the World Summit has always been designed to be a highly participatory platform that fosters exchange between policy makers and representatives from government, cultural and non-cultural sectors. Consequently, the knowledge, enthusiasm and physical presence of our diverse membership and the international arts community are crucial for us to ensure a successful World Summit.

The postponement of the World Summit does not mean important dialogue about the state of artistic freedom has to wait. With a new summit date planned for May 2023, we will use the lead-in time to start the conversation with online discussions. This will commence with the launch of the World Summit Discussion Paper in early May 2022, which includes contributions from eight key thought leaders from across the globe.

We will be providing regular updates through our ACORNS news bulletins and the World Summit website in the coming months to confirm the exact dates for the World Summit in May 2023, and the series of online conversations to be had in the lead up to the in-person gathering. We look forward to staying engaged with all of you in the international arts community and are excited to share these important conversations with you.