| 'The Scent of Ink' will be performed at Asia Culture Center in Gwangju on June 22 as a part of the 7th ASEM Culture Ministers' Meeting. / Courtesy of National Dance Company of Korea |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
Culture ministers from Europe and Asia will discuss cultural enrichment and the creative economy at the seventh Asia-Europe Culture Ministers' Meeting in the southern city of Gwangju from June 22 to 24.
The Culture Ministers' Meeting is a part of the Asia–Europe Meeting (ASEM), centering on cultural exchanges and cooperation. This year's theme is “Culture and the Creative Economy” and Korea as host country will play a leading role in combining culture and state-of-the-art technology.
For the seventh edition of the meeting at the Asia Culture Center, over 200 delegates from some 40 countries will visit Gwangju. Among them are eight culture ministers ― from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos, Greece, Poland and Korea ― and 11 vice culture ministers ― from China, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Estonia, Italy and Hungary.
ASEM, a non-binding body of European and Asian countries, established the meeting in 2003 in an attempt to promote cultural exchanges among member countries. After the inaugural event in Beijing, the meeting was held once every two years, alternating between Asian and European hosts.
Seoul hosted the third ASEM Meeting in 2000 and Jeju Island held the eighth ASEM Finance Ministers' Meeting in 2008, but this is the first ASEM culture ministers' meeting held here.
Park Young-goog, deputy minister for culture and arts policy, said there were suggestions from some member countries for Korea to host the meeting this time.
"The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism reasoned that it was going to be a great opportunity to share Korea's vision for the creative economy and cultural enrichment," Park explained.
On Wednesday, preliminary events such as the Second Senior Officials Meeting and Asia–Europe Foundation Policy Panel Discussion will be held, followed by "Scent of Ink," an evening performance by the National Dance Company of Korea.
After the opening ceremony Thursday, participating countries will present case studies and discuss a future agenda. Workshops will be held in the afternoon with themes such as Future of Information and Communications Technology, and the Creative Industries and International Cooperation for Vitalizing the Creative Industries.
Park said Korea will present its Culture Creation and Convergence Belt during a special session Thursday.
"The Culture Creation and Convergence Belt is a good example of Korea's creative industry and we will show the world how we combine technology and culture," Park said.
On June 24, the last day of the meeting, Korean Culture Minister Kim Jong-deok will issue a statement as chair of the meeting.
"We plan to establish the ASEM Creative Industry Young Leadership Network through this meeting,” Park said. “Youngsters interested in the convergence of the cultures and technologies of Asia and Europe can experience cultural exchanges through online platforms, residency programs and workshops.”