It is no coincidence that the successful Erasmus programme is often cited first as an example of the benefits of European integration and prosperity. In line with the Commission’s proposals for a new EU Youth Strategy, 2018 has already seen the promising EU Conference on Youth, Peace and Security bringing together young peacebuilders, senior EU leaders and representatives from civil society and will continue to be a promising year for youth involvement in peacebuilding and political decision-making, both within the EU and beyond its borders.

The Global Cultural Leadership Programme empowers and connects young cultural practitioners across borders

Every year, 40 young talented cultural managers from the EU Member States and its strategic partners (Brazil, Canada, China, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and the United States) gather for training under the EU’s Global Cultural Leadership Programme (GCLP). Led by the Partnership Instrument-funded Cultural Diplomacy Platform, the Programme aims to support youth empowerment and opens up spaces for future international cultural collaboration and promotes more inclusive societies. During these seminars, young cultural managers have the opportunity to understand the challenges of cultural diplomacy and international cultural collaboration and learn from their interactions with peers beyond borders to shape the society of the future.

Kristin Cheung, a young artist from Canada and participant to the 2017 GCLP, underlines the high benefits of the programme for her work: “I was able to connect with so many cultural workers from across the globe. I’ve discovered so many inspiring projects from curators and producers I would not have been able to connect with if it were not for GCLP. It’s led me to pursue a new path for my career – to use my current skills and experience and apply them on a more international scene.”

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The GCLP alumni network is growing and slowly building up a global community of like-minded young people in the field of art and culture. Previous GCLP participants are now able to spread the word about how the programme has turned them into agents of change.

The Mexican cultural manager Luanda Smith shares her experience in the 2016 GCLP in Malta: “Besides specialised cultural diplomacy learning, multicultural peer-to-peer experience with specialists from other countries, sharing experiences, challenges, goals and vision of future the GCLP motivated me to keep working on cultural civil society capacity building to address local needs and develop projects that also enable international cultural cooperation.”

After Valletta in 2016 and Athens in 2017, 40 selected young talented young practitioners are awaited for a one-week training in Amsterdam, Netherlands, from 28 October - 1 November 2018.