Reports & presentations - Arts Festivals Summit 2025
Find all the reports and presentations from the sessions of EFA's Arts Festivals Summit 2025 from 27 to 30 April in Edinburgh (UK), hosted by Edinburgh International Festival, Festivals Edinburgh, and the City of Edinburgh Council.
Workshop: The Music Focus: Music festivals' future
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 14.30-16.15
What challenges, what innovative models, questions and proposals in the field of programming, audience involvement, partnership development, structures and business models in music festivals today. Exchange of experience and ideas. Facilitated by Christian Kuhnt, Intendant of Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, and Mirna Gott, International communication and projects at Music Biennale Zagreb.
Workshop: Festivals Care! Arts and Health
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 10.00-12.00
This workshop reflected on the contribution of the arts to health and the impact the arts have on societal well-being. Facilitated by Rarița Zbranca, Cultural Centre Cluj and expert in the field of arts and health, with the contribution of Katey Warran, Researcher at the University of Edinburgh, in the framework of the Creative Europe supported project CARE – Culture for Mental Health.
Workshop: EFFE Seal for Festival Cities and Regions
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 13.00-16.15
The workshop explored how festivals contribute to local cultural policies, the values policymakers assign to them, and how these expectations are implemented in practice. Facilitated by strategy group members of A Soul for Europe: Nicolas Bertrand, Manager and independent consultant, and Nele Hertling, Director of the Performing Arts section of the Academy of Arts Berlin, as well as Elena Polivtseva independent researcher and a co-founder of Culture Policy Room and Leonie Facius, Research Master student.
Workshop on Festivals and environmental sustainability
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 10.00-12.00
The workshop focused on Green Travel & Transport to share practical ideas and inspiring experiences of how to (and how not to!) travel lightly on your festival journey. Mega, maxi or mini, greenfield, townscape or city, share these best practices, and inspire us with your own ideas along the way. The second part will take you out for a walkshop. We'll talk, we'll walk, we'll feel better together. Facilitated by Peter Florence and Tamar Brüggemann, initiators of the European Festivals Forest.
Workshop on Festivals and artistic freedom
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 10.00-12.00
This workshop looked at the important topic of artistic freedom of speech, polarisation, and (self-)censorship. Facilitated by Kirsten Xanthippe, Researcher on Grievance Politics and Democratic Governance at the University of Southampton. This workshop is co-hosted together with Pearle*.
Workshop on Festivals and their money
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 10.00-12.00
This workshop digged into budgeting in times of cuts and crisis. Why festivals are business. Facilitated by Natália Oszkó-Jakab, Director of Valley of Arts, and Michelle McLeod, Marketing, sponsorship and events Consultant.
Workshop on Festivals and AI
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 14.30-16.15
This workshop explored the challenges and opportunities that AI (Artificial Intelligence) platforms are bringing to festival programming, planning, and experience. Facilitated by Matjaz Vidmar, Researcher, lecturer and strategist at the University of Edinburgh, and Emma Dorfman, Dramaturg and researcher.
Workshop Festivals and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging (DEIAB)
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 14.30-16.15
This workshop allowed to discuss how festivals are dealing with Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Belonging (DEIAB) and see which possible actions festivals can put in place in this field. Facilitated by Ceyda Berk-Söderblom, Arts manager, curator and festival programmer specialising in social inclusion, diversity and inclusion management.
Workshop on resilience and solidarity in times of crisis
Tuesday, 29 April 2025 | 14.30-16.15
How do festivals respond to the realities of crises worldwide? This hybrid conversation will look at actionable ideas for how festivals can support each other and will include voices from Jordan and Mexico with Ireri Mugica and Hadi Abunahleh. This workshop is co-hosted together with The Festival Academy and facilitated by Inge Ceustermans, General Director, and Thobile Maphanga, Board Member.
Festivals facts and figures: Research presentations by EFA Collective Members & EFFE Hubs
The session “Festivals Facts and Figures: Research presentations” presented some of the works carried out by EFA Collective and Affiliate Members & EFFE Hubs.
Download the presentations here:
- Fiona Goh, British Arts Festivals Association
- Alexandra Bobes, France Festivals (in French) - English version upon request; ask the EFA Team.
- Tereza Raabová, EFFE Hub Czechia / Culture Matters
- Agathe Créac'h, REMA - EEMN
Keynotes
You can dive back in the keynotes of the Arts Festivals Summit Edinburgh by reading them in the Summer edition of our e-magazine "Eye-to-Eye, The Festival Quarterly"
- Edinburgh: the Festival, the City, the artistic quest - Nicola Benedetti’s journey as an Artist and Artistic director
- Becoming good ancestors: Culture and the art of long-term thinking - Roman Krznaric