Manifesta 15 Metropolitan Assembly
Environmental and climate emergency
Cultural vitality
The Manifesta 15 Metropolitan Assembly represented a process that featured citizen participation on a metropolitan scale. With the participation of 12 cities from the metropolitan region of Barcelona and within the framework of the Manifesta 15 Biennial, this deliberative space sought to address two major challenges: how to create cultural spaces that have a positive impact on the region and how to do so while adopting a more sustainable and environmentally friendly lifestyle.
Objectives
- It seeks to explore and experiment with new spaces of governance.
- It aims to explore and experiment with democratic processes in the development of cultural policies.
- It strives to promote collaboration at regional level.
In 2024, making the most of the fact that Barcelona was the European Capital of Democracy and that the Manifesta 15 Biennial was being held for the first time on a metropolitan scale, we implemented the Manifesta 15 Metropolitan Assembly. This process made it possible to explore how deliberative citizen participation could work at the scale of the metropolitan region.
Made up of 60 people selected by lottery on the basis of diversity criteria, the assembly brought together participants from 12 cities in the metropolitan area: Badalona, Barcelona, Cornellà de Llobregat, El Prat de Llobregat, Granollers, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Mataró, Sabadell, Sant Adrià de Besòs, Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Sant Cugat del Vallès and Terrassa. The notification to sign up for the lottery was made with the support of the institutional and press networks of Manifesta and the PEMB.
During the process, participants reflected on how to imagine collaborative metropolitan spaces that could influence cultural policies, with a special emphasis on the ecosocial transition. The debate focused on three main issues:
How can we implement the future Cultural Rights Act?
How can culture inspire and contribute to the ecosocial transition?
How can we express culture in the metropolitan region?
The assembly took place across three days between March and May, held in Barcelona, Sabadell and L’Hospitalet. Each session featured experts who offered perspectives on topics such as climate, culture and governance. In addition, the Decidim platform was used to facilitate the follow up process and hybrid participation.
The process culminated in a Declaration that sets out the main challenges and measures to move toward a sustainable and democratic culture at the metropolitan level. The highlights include:
Culture as a fundamental right: Culture is recognised as an essential right for all people, emphasising its capacity to develop a critical spirit and create community. Against the backdrop of the climate emergency, culture must be a driving force for structural changes to ensure well-being and ecological balance.
Democratic and participatory governance: This platform calls for a democratically governed culture, where decisions are made collaboratively between institutions, the cultural sector and citizens. It proposes an equitable redistribution of cultural resources and stresses the importance of recognising and dignifying all cultural statements in the region.
Cultural dignity and sustainability: The declaration stresses the need to dignify the cultural world both economically and symbolically by improving funding and labour conditions for cultural professionals. In addition, it promotes a sustainable culture that reduces the environmental impact of cultural events and promotes eco-social justice.
This project has been a significant step in exploring new models of participatory and collaborative governance in the metropolitan region.
