The Regional Council approved the “Apulian Manifesto for Cultural Welfare”, promoted by the Presidency of the Puglia Region, by the Regional Department of Culture, protection and development of cultural enterprises, Migration Policies, Legality and Social Anti-Mafia and by the Municipality of Monte Sant’ Angelo, capital of culture of Puglia for 2024.
Cultural welfare is based on the recognition of the profound connection between culture, social policies and health and promotes an integrated model of well-being of individuals and communities that passes through the visual and performing arts and the valorization of cultural heritage. The Manifesto defines the commitments that public and private entities involved in the development of cultural policies and the production of culture must undertake to promote these practices in the Apulian territory.
The cultural welfare approach, whose effectiveness is recognized by the World Health Organization and the New European Agenda for Culture, challenges policy makers and culture producers to design highly innovative cultural services to ensure that the cultural offer of the Apulian territory is always fully inclusive, accessible and generative of social impact.
“The Apulian Manifesto for Cultural Welfare – declares the Councilor for Culture of the Puglia Region Viviana Matrangola – has the ambition of giving substance to a new paradigm of culture, based on the idea that cultural activities, the psycho-physical well-being of people and the cohesion of our communities can be mutually reinforcing. Scientific research has shown that encouraging the participation of people of all ages in artistic and cultural activities not only has a positive impact on individual well-being, but also strengthens social capital and, with it, the resources of communities in countering all forms of poverty, including educational and cultural poverty, marginalization and deviance. The goal is, as always, to leave no one behind.”
“Cultural welfare – continues Matrangola – does not ask culture and artistic research to replace the role of social or health policies, but wants to inspire them in the consideration that theirs is a public mission, that is, dedicated to improving everyone’s living conditions. After all, a culture that renounces a public role would lose its function.”
“In this direction – concludes the councilor – the Puglia Region commits the signatories of the Manifesto to think, plan and create a cultural offer capable of generating an all-round social impact, that is, of caring for, redeeming, generating relationships and value social, break down barriers, promote social change and peace”.
The Apulian Manifesto for Cultural Welfare is a qualifying element of the strategic directions of the ‘PiiiL Culture in Puglia’, the 2017-2026 Culture Plan, and dialogues with the regional strategy of attracting and valorising #mareAsinistra talents. The text brings to maturity the path started in 2023 by the Puglia Region in collaboration with TPP with the experimentation of innovative practices for cultural welfare, the shared construction of regional guidelines for investments in cultural welfare and the definition of new regional policies and intervention tools, merged into the 2021-27 Regional Program of the Puglia Region based on ERDF and ESF resources, in line with what has already been established by the 2021-27 Partnership Agreement and with the proposals based on the complementary programming for the 2021 cycle -27 (FSC-POC).
The text of the Manifesto, developed by the Section for the Protection and Enhancement of Cultural Heritage and shared with the Municipality of Monte Sant’Angelo, was subjected to public consultation on the PugliaPartecipa platform between 14 April and 31 May 2024, with the aim of enriching and define the areas of activity and commitments of the signing parties.
In addition to the promoters, the signatories of the document are: Ministry of Culture – Regional Secretariat, Ministry of Education and Merit, Anci Puglia, Regional Consortium for Arts and Culture – TPP, Puglia Creativa Productive District, Regional School Office for Puglia, Apulia Film Commission, Aret – Pugliapromozione, Regional Council of Ecomuseums, Petruzzelli Foundation, Notte della Taranta Foundation, Paolo Grassi Foundation/ Festival della Valle D’Itria, Pino Pascali Foundation, Giuseppe Di Vagno Foundation, Carnevale Di Putignano Foundation, Foundation of Focara di Novoli, G. Tatarella Foundation, Canosina Archaeological Foundation, Book Presidia Association, University of Bari Aldo Moro, University of Salento, University of Foggia. The signing of the Manifesto by the Puglia Region, the Municipality of Monte Sant’Angelo and Anci will take place soon at the Municipality of Monte Sant’Angelo. The other parties will sign the document digitally.
