Celebrate the Arts • Transform People • Imagine the World

The 60th anniversary of the European Festivals Association is an opportunity to celebrate and capitalise on the enormous potential and influence that more than 100 arts festivals can bring to bear. Following the slogan Celebrate the Arts • Transform People • Imagine the World EFA aims to define the ‘Bergen Agenda’.

The core mission of a festival is an artistic one. Furthermore, festivals can be opportunities to re-invigorate political and social debate. They can be platforms for dialogue between sectors of society that rarely otherwise meet on neutral ground. They can use their appeal across borders to link European, national, regional and local decision makers and do so in the contest of the stimulus created by artistic excellence.

EFA, therefore is looking to use these qualities to develop the role of festivals in the broader space of public debate. EFA is already actively collaborating with many partner organisations and networks that are at the heart of European cultural life. At the occasion of its Diamond Jubilee EFA calls upon its partners to reinforce efforts to shape an agenda that affects us all.

Festivals have consistently shown over the last decades that they can be extraordinary agents of change, whether socially, economically or intellectually. This is not just recognised in Europe but increasingly around the globe. Through activities such as the Atelier for Young Festival Managers, conversations at international meetings and dialogue with fellow partners, EFA has confirmed its position as vital partner of organisations throughout the world.

In 2012, EFA is eager to form a coalition of organisations dedicated to the process of transformation, whether that is transforming the individual, professional practice, or the political climate.