From dialogue to action.
#SDECE2026 brought together policymakers, cultural and creative sector representatives, researchers, educators and project leaders in Brussels to address one urgent question:
Not whether AI will transform the creative economy.
It already is.
The real question is: who gets to shape that transformation?
Across the day, one message became clear: appreciation is no longer enough. Europe’s Cultural and Creative Industries need the structures, funding, governance seats and experimentation spaces required to shape the AI transition on their own terms.
#SDECE2026 marked a shift:
From recognition to regulation.
From dialogue to infrastructure.
From AI disruption to creative leadership.
Full recap and photo gallery:
👉 Link in bio!
#SDECE2026 #CreativeFED #CCSI #AI #CreativeEconomy #EuropeanInnovation
Es war mir eine Ehre, diese Woche beim Strategischen Dialog zur Europäischen Kreativwirtschaft zu sprechen. Fokussiert haben wir uns auf den Einfluss von Künstlicher Intelligenz auf Kunst und Kreativität🙏
Europas Kreativwirtschaft beschäftigt Millionen von Menschen und schafft enormen wirtschaftlichen Mehrwert, doch wird sie in der Debatte um Künstliche Intelligenz noch immer zu oft außen vor gelassen.
Das muss sich ändern. KI, die auf der Arbeit von Künstlern aufbaut, ohne deren Zustimmung oder Vergütung, entspricht nicht dem europäischen Weg. Und die wichtigsten Fragen zur KI – Fragen, die sich um Identität, Urheberschaft und Demokratie drehen – erfordern die Mitwirkung von Künstlern, Geisteswissenschaftlern und Sozialwissenschaftlern.
Ich werde die Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft weiterhin unterstützen, während ich über das nächste Rahmenprogramm verhandle, an dessen Gestaltung ich als Verhandlungsführerin des Parlaments mitwirken darf. 💡Nochmals ein großes Dankeschön an @creativefed.eu für die Organisation dieses strategischen Dialogs und die Einladung!
#SDECE2026 — Thank You to All Participants, Speakers & Partners!
Today, we brought together policymakers, artists, researchers, MEPs, sector organisations, and technology stakeholders to shape the future of creative work in the age of AI.
From reflective AI as artistic material to microcredentials as policy tools.
From craft innovation to skills frameworks.
From provocation to policy recommendations.
The message was clear:
AI is not a technological inevitability. It is a policy choice — and Europe must ensure it strengthens fair working conditions, creative autonomy, and sustainable careers.
A heartfelt thank you to:
🎤 Our speakers — for their insights, provocations, and leadership: EU Commissioner @glenn_micallef , @christian_ehler , @veravdburg , @romainboonen , David Crombie, Becky Riches, @jonaskasperjensen
🤝 Our partners and projects — for advancing this work across Europe: @cyanotypes.ig , #CREDEX, @craftit4sd .
👏 All participants — for engaging, questioning, and contributing to the policy recommendations that will shape the next phase of Europe's creative economy strategy
The dialogue continues.
📄 #CreativeFED White Paper 2026 — coming soon
📍 #ECIS26 — Dublin
📅 #SDECE27 — June 2027
From dialogue to policy action. From Brussels to the regions. From principles to practice.
Let's keep building.
#AIPolicy #CreativeEconomy #FairWork #CulturalAutonomy #ThankYou
AI is not just a technological development. It is a policy choice.
At #SDECE2026, the closing session consolidates the key policy recommendations emerging from the day's discussions.
Closing Session: From Dialogue to Policy Action
This session will summarise the main conclusions and outline clear priorities for EU action on AI, skills, and working conditions — highlighting how policy can strengthen fair work and sustainable creative careers across the cultural and creative sectors.
It will also feature:
• The launch of the #CreativeFED White Paper 2026
• Announcement of #ECIS26 in Dublin
• Announcement of #SDECE27 (June 2027)
• The regional dimension of creative economy policy
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#PolicyAction #CreativeEconomy #SDECE2026
The future of craft in the age of AI is not about automation — it's about diversity.
At #SDECE2026, @jonaskasperjensen (@craftit4sd / @aarhus_university ) explores how AI can support, rather than standardise, local creative ecosystems.
Session: Innovating Work in Crafts and Arts — AI and Artistic Research for Fairer Creative Careers
This session explores the intersection of artistic research, AI, and the greening of the cultural and creative sectors — with a particular focus on crafts.
It will highlight how AI-driven innovation can drive sustainable, low-impact creative practices and develop green skills for artists — while emphasizing the importance of artistic research as a core part of the green transition.
Jonas Kasper Jensen:
""The future of craft in the context of AI is not about automation, but about maintaining diversity by ensuring that technology supports, rather than standardises, local creative ecosystems.""
Jonas researches AI, digital technologies, and the creative industries at Aarhus University. His work spans digital fashion, metaverse applications, and data-driven innovation — combining socio-technical perspectives with experimental methods.
The session will conclude with key policy recommendations on how to integrate sustainability, AI, and crafts into EU policy, funding, and long-term strategies for the cultural and creative sectors.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#AIandCraft #GreenTransition #ArtisticResearch @aarhusuni
Skills are increasingly developed outside traditional systems — yet recognition frameworks lag behind.
At #SDECE2026, Becky Riches (#CREDEX / @materahub ) explores how microcredentials can address the rapid pace of change in the cultural and creative sectors driven by AI.
Session: Microcredentials — A Policy Approach to Fairer Creative Careers in the Age of AI
By providing portable, EU-recognized proof of competencies, microcredentials offer a practical solution for upskilling and reskilling, supporting career mobility and fair remuneration in AI-driven creative markets.
The session will focus on recognizing informal and non-formal learning — common in artistic careers — and will develop policy recommendations on how microcredentials can be integrated into EU skills, employment, and cultural policies.
The goal: ensure microcredentials are linked to funding eligibility, public procurement, and career progression in the context of AI.
Becky leads cultural and tourism initiatives with a focus on sustainable development, participatory processes, and social inclusion. She coordinates initiatives centered on micro-credentials and competences within the Creative and Cultural Industries, including the project CREDEX.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#Microcredentials #SkillsRecognition #CREDEX
Upskilling and reskilling are no longer optional.
At #SDECE2026, David Crombie (@cyanotypes.ig / @dekunstvanhku ) leads a policy workshop on how Europe can strengthen its approach to skills development in response to AI-driven transformation.
Session: Strengthening Europe's Capacity to Reskill and Upskill the Cultural and Creative Sector in the Age of AI — A Policy Workshop on the CYANOTYPES Framework
The CYANOTYPES Framework focuses on AI literacy, creative-AI co-creation skills, and contractual literacy — ensuring skills development aligns with the realities of artistic careers and fair working conditions.
Through interactive breakout discussions, participants will generate policy recommendations on making upskilling efforts accessible, fair, and compatible with social protection and paid learning time.
David Crombie:
"Upskilling and reskilling are no longer optional but essential — and it is becoming clear that our sector can provide pragmatic pathways for the future."
The goal: actionable proposals for the EU's long-term AI strategy in the cultural and creative industries.
Unfortunately, the livestream will be interrupted during the workshop.
We’d love you to join us afterwards:
👉 Link in bio!
#CYANOTYPES #Upskilling #AILiteracy
AI is both opportunity and challenge for creative professionals.
At #SDECE2026, @romainboonen explores the tension between innovation and fairness.
Provocation: AI and Creative Work — Friend or Foe? Navigating the Tension Between Innovation and Fairness
Romain Boonen on the shift AI brings:
""The strongest shift AI brings is the need for clarity of intent. In the creative sectors, fair conditions will start with the power to choose: what we delegate to the machine, what we keep, and why.""
Romain is the founder of @empowork.culture , an innovation lab dedicated to reinventing cultural work in the age of AI. With 15 years of experience on Belgium's independent music scene and training in Management, Psychology, and Music Production, he champions responsible adoption of AI while keeping people at the heart of the conversation.
This session will provoke thought on how AI can be shaped to benefit both creativity and fair work — and how policy can support that balance.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#AIandWork #CreativeEconomy #FairConditions
What if we treated AI not as a tool for efficiency, but as a material for reflection?
At #SDECE2026, artist and PhD researcher @veravdburg challenges dominant narratives that frame AI as either threat or productivity tool.
Session: Reflective AI — An Alternative Paradigm for Creative Practice
Vera shares her practice of slow, material-focused engagement with image-based AI systems — from training models on personal archives to integrating ceramic practice with AI generation.
She demonstrates how AI can support artistic self-examination rather than replace creative work — and invites us to reimagine what our tools could look like if we prioritised reflection over automation.
Vera is a @dutchdesignawards 2025 winner for Emerging Talent and recently completed her PhD at @tudelft 's Designing Intelligence Lab.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#ReflectiveAI #ArtisticResearch #CreativePractice
Europe's next budget cycle will shape creative work for the next decade.
At #SDECE2026, @christian_ehler addresses the link between AI, competitiveness, and the future of EU funding for the cultural and creative sectors.
Keynote: Competitiveness and Multi-Financial Programme
How can the 2028–2034 EU budget cycle support fair, sustainable creative careers in the age of AI?
This session connects AI governance with long-term funding strategies — ensuring that artists and creative professionals are not left behind.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#EUBudget #CreativeEconomy #AIandPolicy
#SDECE2026 starts now.
Today in Brussels, policymakers, artists, researchers, MEPs, and technology stakeholders are gathering to address a critical question:
How can Europe ensure that AI strengthens, rather than undermines, fair working conditions and sustainable creative careers?
AI is reshaping how cultural and creative work is created, produced, distributed, and monetised — often faster than policy frameworks can respond.
This is not a technological inevitability. It is a policy choice.
Over the course of today, we'll explore:
✅ AI governance and artists' rights
✅ Reskilling and upskilling at the speed of AI
✅ Microcredentials and skills recognition
✅ The future of craft and artistic research
✅ The green transition in creative work
From principles to practice. From dialogue to policy action.
Follow along throughout the day for insights, provocations, and policy recommendations.
Join the #livestream: 👉 Link in bio!
#AIPolicy #CreativeEconomy #FairWork #CulturalAutonomy
Have you forgotten to register for #SDECE2026?
Don’t worry — you can still join the conversation online.
Tomorrow, policymakers, artists, researchers, and creative sector organisations will come together in Brussels to discuss a crucial question:
How can Europe ensure that AI strengthens — rather than undermines — fair working conditions and sustainable careers for artists and creative professionals?
The Strategic Dialogue on the European Creative Economy will explore topics including:
• AI governance and artists’ rights
• fair working conditions in the creative economy
• skills and reskilling in the age of AI
• sustainable creative careers in Europe
If you cannot attend in Brussels, you can still participate online.
Register here:
👉 Link in bio!
#CreativeEconomy #AIPolicy #CulturalPolicy
