The European Commission has recognised the key role of art and culture in driving forward the climate crisis transition process. Through the New European Bauhaus (NEB), culture has a leading role in bringing the European Green Deal closer to the perception of European citizens. Design power and imagination are important tools to make the sustainability transition tangible for citizens in their daily lives.

In light of these developments, several European art academies have started to focus their curriculum on connecting with communities in their urban contexts. Through knowledge development, organisational support and practical collaboration, the academies contribute to 'social resilience', creating societies that are adaptive, curious, inclusive and participatory. A good example comes from ICLEI Member Rotterdam (The Netherlands), where the Hogeschool Rotterdam (HR) has translated its ambitions in the content of education into three focus areas: climate change, social resilience, and circular economy.

Lectureships at the university are used to develop knowledge within these three focus areas. By connecting to concrete social situations, students contribute to knowledge sharing and strengthening social resilience. An interesting example is the Community of Practice Plastic. Here students, educational institutions, government and business work on reducing emissions from plastic into the environment and developing knowledge.

With many more similar projects and initiatives in development, the main challenge now is to create alignment between them. Alignment would create a shared language, knowledge sharing in the form of 'eco-literacy', further professionalisation, and the formation of a powerful local network, enabling upscaling of regenerative initiatives. An example in Rotterdam is Blue City, where designers and entrepreneurs meet and work on 'zero waste' living and future-proof materials.

Initiatives such as Blue City show how arts and culture can create more awareness of the need for a 'holistic perspective', in which the climate crisis cannot be seen separately from other problems, such as economic and social inequality, housing shortages and a functioning democracy. Grondstoffenstation Afrikaandermarkt is an example of what such a holistic approach looks like. Here, residual flows such as wood, vegetables and cardboard are collected and prepared for processing into new products. The space in which this happens is 100% recycled and twelve members of the Afrikaanderwijk Cooperative earn their living there.

In addition, artists can put on the agenda organisational forms that contribute to restoring social relationships, either between citizens or between citizens and institutions. An example of this is Cultuur&Campus Putselaan (C&CP). Funded by the NEB programme of the EU, C&CP pilots a sustainable and inclusive approach to city development in an environment that exemplifies the social challenges in Europe: growing economic inequality, displacement of people through gentrification, and low trust in institutions. By connecting to local initiatives through creative, holistic placemaking, students, teachers, scientists, entrepreneurs, and residents - work on sustainable and inclusive urban development. This starts with restoring and building trust, by sharing space, knowledge, experience, and resources.

These examples show how culture and cultural heritage have emerged as central themes in discussions about sustainable development. Culture and our shared heritage can be seen as a “fourth pillar” of sustainability, capable of driving forward debates on our common urban future. More information about ICLEI’s work on this topic can be found here.