Culture, Pillar Of Sustainable Development

Tehran, May 20, IRNA - Director-General of UNESCO Ms Irina Bokova in her message on the occasion of World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, May 21, 2012, said culture must absolutely be included as a pillar of any sustainable development strategy. She meanwhile announced that preparations are under way at the United Nations to set the new post-2015 international cooperation agenda. According to a press release issued by the UN Information Center (UNIC) here on Sunday, the full text of her message reads: “Culture is what we are. It embodies our identities and our dreams for the future. Cultures are mutually sustaining and contribute to the enhancement of humanity’s wealth and productivity. Such diversity is a wellspring for the renewal of ideas and societies. It holds great potential for growth, dialogue and social participation. “By protecting and promoting culture, we sustain diversity. New technologies and rapid globalization are bringing cultures together as never before. Cultural diversity features prominently every day on new-media screens and in our mixed societies. Such intermingling is enrichment, but it can also fuel misunderstandings and be used as an excuse for division. We must equip the rising generations with stronger intercultural skills so that they may learn to live together and make the most of the profusion of cultures. “The chief purpose of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is to provide ways and means of unlocking the potential of cultural diversity. UNESCO’s cultural conventions show that culture can forge ties between the past and the future by protecting the world’s tangible heritage and intangible heritage and by promoting the diversity of cultural expressions. Culture helps us to rise above conflicts by elucidating the factors that bring us together. It boosts the creativity that drives innovation and development. The UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, adopted in 2001, states that “cultural diversity is as necessary for humankind as biodiversity is for nature”. The Declaration has laid the foundation for inclusive world governance capable of ensuring observance of human rights worldwide. “Culture and creativity are renewable resources par excellence. Now that states are looking for mainsprings of growth and sustainable development, I call on policy makers and civil society stakeholders to acknowledge this role of cultural diversity and to factor it into public policies. Our natural environment has been weakened: let us find ways and means of optimizing our cultural environment. Owing to their economic potential, creative industries are engines of green growth. Furthermore, experience shows that efficient development models are those that actually integrate local cultural specificities, thus eliciting the involvement of the communities concerned. Preparations are under way at the United Nations to set the new post-2015 international cooperation agenda, and culture must absolutely be included as a pillar of any sustainable development strategy, for it will enable peoples to dialogue with each other and be masters of their future.”/end