Posted by:
Fermin Serrano
1 year, 1 month ago
(0 comments)
** Some reflections under the Agenda 2030 perspective.
**
Culture defines us as a society and, as such, public administrations all around the world place it at the center of all the SDGs. This is what we do from the Government of Aragon in Spain, including culture as a cross-cutting concern in all policies towards the 2030 Agenda, so that out development is more inclusive and people-oriented. [It is agreed](http://http://interaccio.diba.cat/sites/interaccio.diba.cat/files/culture_in_the_sustainable_development_goals._the_role_of_the_european_union_-_copia.pdf) that culture specially contributes to SDG 11 for more sustainable cities by promoting and safeguarding our heritage. It also applies to SDG 8 for decent work and economic growth, by the cultural sector itself and its links with other sectors (for example, tourism or audiovisuals), and to SDG 10 and 16 by reducing inequality and moving towards just and inclusive societies .
Alligned with the STARTS initiative, I want to highlight the role of culture as an driving force of innovation (SDG 9). This is key during pandemia times: in order to resume the path of sustainable competitiveness that will help us get out of the current crisis, both European society and European productive system must be able to take advantage of the potential that culture and the arts have by imagining new scenarios, future artifacts, or reinterpreting interfaces. If artists, designers, and creatives they have something in common, it is that they are good at making the latest concepts understandable, in a friendly way. Making sense of complexity in the hiperfast world is crucial. So, the confluence of art, science and technology is transcendental for society, people, to embrace the innovative solutions that global challenges need. And so that we all do it with certain guarantees.
Technological development is full of dilemmas and situations in which the result of some solutions is not what was expected, and frequently [unwanted secondary consequences appear](http://https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/transformation/social-innovation-and-challenge-of-democracy-in-europe/). For example, the use of artificial intelligence in social networks involves a series of ethical considerations on issues such as the spread of fakenews or cybersecurity. Its misuse is even affecting democratic stability in some countries, accentuating the polarization between difererent ways of thinking. These add to other direct implications on the welfare of users (citizens).
This example reminds us that technology is too important to be left solely in the hands of technologists, and that it is necessary to incorporate the humanities into the innovation process. Either to look to the future and anticipate possible risks to the solutions proposed for current problems, or to look to the past and remember lessons learned in our history. The world of culture help innovations to advance in the direction of the SDGs. Therefore, investing in culture is not a cost but a profitable investment in economic, environmental and social terms. In other words: it is not an option.
The Government of Aragon is committed to eliminating unnecessary barriers that separate the worlds of the humanities and technologies and to increasing the competitiveness and sustainability of our innovation system. Some examples: we are promoting STEAM and SDGs oriented reforms in the educational update taking place; and we have included arts and new media in the Aragonese [Digital Innovation Hub](http://www.aragondih.com), an ecosystem with administrations, business, researchers and investors that offers technologies such as HPC or cognitive systems for industrial modernization in sectors such as Industry 4.0, logistics or agri-food.
Our culture defines who we are and how we are seen in the world. Culture also helps us to define who we want to be and to mobilize the society as a whole into that directions. During these months we are all working hard for the [Next Generation EU](http://https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_20_1658), the most important recovery and transformation plan ever agreed at European level. In order to achieve expected results, we must enrich our solutions space and, for that, innovation must include all the creative forces. Specially, following all the work done by STARTS-alike initiatives, innovation leaders must ensure that the humanistic thinking perspectives are at the very core center of the creation process, in order to undertake people-oriented digital and ecological transitions.
Share on Facebook
Comments
There are currently no comments
New Comment