A Global Conversation on Culture-Led Development
From 11 to 13 May, the city of Valmiera, Latvia, will host the international conference Culture Matters Here: Cultivating Creative Place-based Innovation in Non-urban Communities. The event will convene 130 participants from 28 countries to explore how culture and the creative industries contribute to quality of life, strengthen community resilience, and open up new development pathways beyond major urban centres.
International Perspectives
The conference will open with a keynote address by Susan Luckman, a leading researcher in the creative industries at the University of Adelaide (Australia). Her talk, “All That Is Old Is New Again: Place-based Innovation and Value Creation in the Age of AI,” will frame discussions on the evolving role of creativity in peripheral and rural contexts.
She will be joined by a diverse group of international experts, including Tim Wojan (USA), an applied economist specialising in the role of innovation, design, and the arts in regional economies; Jude Ortiz (Canada), a community development practitioner at NORDIK Institute; and Nancy Duxbury (Portugal), Principal Investigator of the IN SITU project and expert in culture-based place development.
Livestream and Access
The main conference sessions will be livestreamed via the IN SITU YouTube channel and Facebook page. You can find the YouTube links to each plenary livestream below.
11 May – Day 1
| Time | Session details |
|---|---|
| 9:30 – 10:00 | Welcome and opening Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8-mpwu2CZ0 |
| 10:00 – 10:45 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8-mpwu2CZ0 Unpacking the IN SITU legacy: Research, capacity-building, and policy |
| 11:15 – 12:00 | Keynote speech Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8-mpwu2CZ0 ‘ All that is old is new again’: Place-Based Innovation and Value Creation in the Age of AI |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8-mpwu2CZ0 The power of connection: Strengthening rural creators through collective action |
| 16:15 – 17:30 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQzRX3hLTyI Culture in action: Practical lessons from non-urban creative practices |
12 May – Day 2
| Time | Session details |
|---|---|
| 9:30 – 11:00 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BoKxLqgXYQ Vibrancies at the European peripheries: Cultural sprouts from the IN SITU Labs |
13 May – Day 3
| Time | Session details |
|---|---|
| 9:30 – 10:30 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CHxVQ8KP1KQ Capacity building for the future: Tools and strategies for creative innovation in non-urban areas |
| 13:30 – 14:30 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTJQP6gp1Zw Where is innovation coming from? Rethinking place-based creativity through a non-urban lens |
| 14:30 – 15:30 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTJQP6gp1Zw Shaping future policies: EU policy frameworks for non-urban creative ecosystems |
| 16:00 – 17:00 | Plenary session Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTJQP6gp1Zw Closing considerations and future directions |
Research, Practice, and Local Insights
Over three days, the conference will feature more than 40 research presentations and case studies presented across parallel thematic sessions. Topics will range from policy and planning frameworks to community knowledge and heritage stewardship, bioregional innovation, craft and music traditions, culture–health collaboration, resilience in the creative industries, digital creativity, gamification, and rural innovation.
In addition to the main sessions, participants will take part in four study visits across Valmiera Municipality, offering first-hand insights into local cultural, heritage, and creative ecosystems.
Shaping Future Policy and Practice
Plenary sessions will bring together key research findings and explore future directions for culture- and creativity-driven development in non-urban territories. Discussions will focus on how cultural and creative practices foster community resilience, support place-based innovation, and inform policy frameworks for sustainable creative ecosystems.
Speakers will also examine emerging models of collaboration and reflect on how cultural initiatives can strengthen both social and economic vitality outside major cities.
About the Conference and IN SITU Project
The conference is organised by the Latvian Academy of Culture and the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra (Portugal), in collaboration with the European Network of Cultural Centres, Culture Action Europe, and local partners—Valmiera Municipality and Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences.
It marks the final conference of the EU Horizon Europe project IN SITU: Place-based innovation of cultural and creative industries in non-urban areas. Over the past four years, the project has developed research and experimental initiatives aimed at strengthening innovation capacity in cultural and creative sectors outside major urban centres.
Valmiera is one of six IN SITU research territories—known as living labs—where in-depth studies have explored the development potential of the cultural and creative sector and opportunities for international collaboration. Two local initiatives highlighted within the project include the Valmiera County Manor Network and the creative horticulture enterprise LAUX.
For more information on the conference, click here.
For further information:
Ilona Asare
Latvian Academy of Culture (LKA), Latvia
Ilona.Asare@lka.edu.lv
Tel: +371 260 111 02
Web: https://insituculture.eu
The “IN SITU: Place-based innovation of cultural and creative industries in non-urban areas” project combines research and experimental actions to advance the innovation-related practices, capacities, and potential of cultural and creative industries (CCIs) based in non-urban areas of the EU. The project is funded by the European Commission under the Horizon Europe Program (project no.101061747). It began on July 1, 2022, and will run for four years. The IN SITU project consortium comprises 13 Full Partners from 12 countries, consisting of 11 research institutions, a European-wide cultural network, and a national cultural foundation.
