World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development
MONDIACULT: World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development
MONDIACULT is UNESCO’s biggest global meeting on culture. It brings together member states to agree on a shared global cultural agenda. The first MONDIACULT was held in 1982 in Mexico City. After a long gap, it was relaunched in 2022 and is planned to occur every four years, with the next edition in 2025 in Barcelona, Spain.
Where and when it has met
- 1982: Mexico City, Mexico
- 1998: Stockholm, Sweden
- 2022: Mexico City, Mexico
- 2025: Barcelona, Spain
Key ideas and policy work over the years
- The conferences helped establish culture as a crucial part of development and national policy.
- The World Decade for Cultural Development (1988–1998) supported international policy on protecting and promoting culture and diversity.
- Important international texts emerged, including:
- Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity (2001)
- Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003)
- Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005)
What happened at MONDIACULT 2022
- More than 150 states participated.
- A Final Declaration recognized culture as a global public good and urged its inclusion in the post-2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.
- It also asked UNESCO to reconvene MONDIACULT every four years and to prepare a Global Report on Cultural Policies for each conference.
What happened at MONDIACULT 2025 (Barcelona)
- Thousands of participants and more than 150 ministers of culture attended.
- The conference continued regional consultations (held in late 2024 and early 2025).
- Side events included forums for youth, cities and local governments, and a civic forum called Ágora Cívica.
- The Barcelona Declaration on Cultural Rights emphasized culture as a space for identity, resilience, and freedom.
- Main outcomes centered on two axes: placing cultural rights at the heart of public policy and integrating culture as a specific area within the United Nations post-2030 agenda.
- A key goal was to protect creators from the impacts of artificial intelligence and digital exploitation.
The role and goals of MONDIACULT
- MONDIACULT is a ministerial, state-led, cross-sectoral forum that connects heritage, creativity, education, environment, and rights.
- Its purpose is to define a long-term cultural agenda that links with the broader United Nations system.
- UNESCO aims to relaunch MONDIACULT as a regular quadrennial event to boost global cultural policy dialogue and cooperation.
2022 and 2025 focus areas and themes
- 2022 objectives: five main goals for shaping cultural policy (broad and long-term in scope).
- 2025 themes: six themes and two focus areas
- Cultural rights
- Digital technologies in the culture sector
- Culture and education
- Economy of culture
- Culture and climate action
- Culture, heritage and crisis
- Focus areas: Culture for peace; Artificial intelligence and culture
MONDIACULT continues to aim for strong, people-centered cultural policy that supports creativity, education, rights, and sustainable development globally.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 11:38 (CET).