Nina Obiljen Koržinek, Minister of Culture of the Republic of Croatia, participated in the closing panel of the conference Participatory Governance in Culture: Exploring Practices, Theories and Policies. DO IT TOGETHER held from 22 to 24 November in Rijeka.
She talked about the topic of public participation in the decision making process in culture, and as she later stated to the media, she said on the panel that in Croatia there is a long tradition of professional associations, artists and the public participating in the debate on cultural policies.
She remarked that it was very valuable and useful to hear experiences from other countries regarding the involvement of citizens on the national level in the debate on cultural policies, from the smallest community to the wider public.
She mentioned the Kultura Nova Foundation as a positive example of a facilitator of public involvement in the debate on cultural policies in Croatia.
“I had the opportunity to be in the Ministry of Culture and as state secretary witness the example of this bottom-up initiative which resulted in the adoption of the Kultura Nova Foundation Act and its successful work over the last 6-7 year.
There are multiple similar examples. When enacting a law in Croatia, we involve the interested public. The cultural public additionally participates in the decision making process regarding financing through a system of cultural committees, and strategic planning processes which took place until now have involved large-scale consultations with everyone acting in the field of culture. That is how it is going to be on the future work on a national cultural strategy,” said Nina Obuljen Koržinek.
