U40 Fellows in the Japanese Garden at UNESCO Headquarters

We envision a world in which culture and cultural diversity are actively taken up as a value, an objective, a priority and an instrument for advancing humanity and human development.

To achieve this vision, U40 participants encourage each State Party to formulate and implement cultural policy measures that reflect each State’s particular needs and circumstances.

Culture, and specifically the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions, must be taken into account in every decision-making process and normative initiative adopted at local, national, regional and international levels. In so doing, culture can become a firm global governance priority.

We are all – regions, states, communities and individuals – developing culturally, with equal dignity and mutual respect.

The active involvement and recognized engagement of civil society is essential to achieve this vision.

Paris, June 2009

Where do we want to go

As a young and innovative group of international experts, we therefore want to build organisational capacities for the network. We want to better communicate our goals and outcomes. We want to position the U40 Network for the future to be more effective as a diverse international group of cultural policy experts in the implementation of the 2005 UNESCO Convention.