The international conference of European creative hubs How Work Works, an initiative launched and funded by the European Commission through its Creative Europe programme, kicked off in Belgrade today.

Over 150 delegates of numerous hub organisations and European and regional partners responded to the first of three planned forums aimed at mapping the European ecosystem of hub initiatives engaged in the field of creativity, education and entrepreneurship. The goal is to exchange ideas, develop local and European creative industries and support emerging entrepreneurs.

“The European Commission has organised and funded the conference of European creative hubs to facilitate networking among young people working in creative industries and thus connect different countries,” Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Oscar Benedikt said at the opening.

He said the EU represented a mixture of diversities, creating a higher level of European cultures, adding that co-creativity leads the way forward which is why creative hubs are being created across the continent through the Creative Europe programme.

“Serbia takes active participation in the Programme launched by dynamic young people in order to create hubs and support the youth and help them to develop ideas,” Benedikt said.

Barbara Stracher of EC DG Education and Culture said the Creative Europe programme was part of the Commission’s diplomacy strategy with the aim of learning from its participants.

“Creative sector may offer much better solutions and we can learn so much from you,” she said.

Head of Creative Europe programme Serbia Dimitrije Tadic said the Programme’s main goals were to develop the audience, mobility and concept of creative industries.

He said culture was the central element of the new economy driven by innovation and access to knowledge, adding that culture and creative industries are the creators of new creative jobs.

Stressing the importance of interpersonal contacts, Tadic said they were necessary in order to keep people up to date with cultural developments.

The international conference How Work Works is part of the project European Creative Hubs Network. The main part of the conference programme takes place on 23-24 September at the Yugoslav Film Archive and includes lectures, case studies, panel discussions, networking activities and several side events.  The forum will discuss the subject of creative hubs development, bearing in mind that these organisations play a crucial role in supporting emerging entrepreneurs and the creatives across the continent as well as the development of creative industries.

The project European Creative Hubs Network is funded by the European Commission through its Creative Europe programme and implemented in partnership with the British Council. The conference How Work Works is realised with support from the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia and a number of local partners such as the Yugoslav Film Archive, Bitef teatar, GI Group, Diagonala 2.0 and Macura Museum.