The Future of World Culture. The MONDIACULT 2025 Conference in Barcelona: Concepts and practices for a ‘joint human culture’ in the era of de- and re-globalisation

Abstract

From 29 September to 1 October 2025, Barcelona hosted what is nominally the world’s largest cultural conference: the UNESCO MONDIACULT Conference, organised by the Spanish government on behalf of the United Nations. The focus was on creating a joint human culture for the future. The conference is already now regarded as historic: for the first time, culture was set to be declared a standalone development goal for the world in the coming years. To this end, an 18th Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) on ‘Culture’ is being planned as a stand-alone goal for the post-2030 sustainability agenda. Thirdly, the first global fact sheet on the status and interconnection of international cultural policies was published at the 2025 MONDIACULT. The aim for the coming years is to raise these policies to a more unified level and enhance their standing within the spectrum of sectoral policies. At the intersection of these three pillars, the conference’s fourth focal point was the long-term future of global culture as a whole, where the influence of artificial intelligence is destined to grow just as rapidly as the role of culture in promoting peace. Together, these themes made MONDIACULT 2025 a milestone for the future role of culture in the wider development of the globe – provided its findings are taken up by the global community of nations, NGOs and private actors.