Invitation to the CoC Session

The UBC Commission on Culture (CoC) would like to invite you to discuss cultural festivals as strengtheners of local identity in the 9^th CoC working session to be held in Vaasa on 24-26 November 2006. The main subjects to be discussed are
- image
- identity
- specific features of cultural festivals
- global and local

The following key speakers have been invited to give a speech in the session: Senior curator Gun Westholm (County museum of Gotland) has since the very beginning of 1984 been involved in the organization of The Medieval Week. She is also one of the organizers of Gotland -the Viking Island, which is a new festival that started in 2005.

PhD Timo Cantell works as a professor in the department of the arts management in Sibelius Academy, Helsinki. He is a sociologist and his researches have been focused on the meeting points of culture and urban planning and economic and social impacts of festivals.

PhD Yrjö Heinonen is a researcher who has studied the Tango-festival in Seinäjoki, Finland. The main topics in his research are the image of the cultural festival and the community, identity and local in relation with global.

We will also meet representatives of the Hanse Sail Maritime Festival (Rostock), the Festival of the Baltic Cities (St. Petersburg), the Night of the Arts (Vaasa) and the city of Umea, candidate for the European Capital of Culture 2014. There will also be space for everyone who is willing to make a presentation.

Deadline for registration is latest by 8 November.