On Friday 21 July and Saturday 1 August 2015, Minister of Culture Maggy Nagel was at the International Conference of Ministers of Culture, organised by Italy in conjunction with the Expo2015 in Milan.
The conference assembled 83 delegations as well as UNESCO, the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, the UNWTO and ICCROM, with a view to discussing armed conflict and natural disasters. These issues were cited as two major challenges to culture, and Luxembourg's Ministry of Culture stated that recent events which have contributed to the destruction of cultural heritage have incited the international community to defend it against all forms of human and natural aggression.
The Ministry continued that this heritage does not only represent the identity and historical memory of the people, but is also and instrument of knowledge, dialogue and mutual reciprocity between different cultures.
In her speech, Minister of Culture Maggy Nagel stressed that culture should not be regarded as an area where the stakes are lower than in other sectors, but rather be recognised for not just its contribution to economic development, but indeed its fundamental contribution to living together and sharing a 'common pool' of values and identities. Minister Nagel emphasised the need to "invest all our efforts in the demonstration and wider acceptance that the development and future of our societies also needs culture" - a message which she stated needs to be strengthened in educational systems.
The conference was concluded with statements on the need to act against destruction, incluidng under the auspices of UNESCO, and to push forward the role of culture as an instrument of dialogue - a subject which has also been considered by the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the EU.
This message received strong support from Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who was also in attendance. He added, "Culture is the identity card of a people [...] and soul of the international community. [...] Without culture, we are poorer and less human."
Photo by Sarah Graham (Minister of Culture, Maggy Nagel)
