Creative Economy: A Feasible Development Option

1Concept and context of the creative economydemocratic governance. The report emphasizes that culturaldiversity is a key dimension for sustainable development andpeace, and examines four areas that significantly influencesthe evolution of cultural diversity: languages, education, communicationand cultural content, as well as creativity and themarketplace. The objective was to propose a coherent visionof cultural diversity by clarifying how it can become beneficialto the action of the international community.1.3.4 Sustainable developmentThe creative industries also contribute to sustainabledevelopment. It is becoming increasingly recognized that theconcept of “sustainability” has a larger scope beyond simplyits application to the environment. The tangible and intangiblecultural capital of a community, a nation or a region of theworld is something that must be preserved for future generationsjust as natural resources and ecosystems need to be safeguardedto ensure continuation of human life on the planet.Cultural sustainability implies a development processthat maintains all types of cultural assets, from minority languagesand traditional rituals to artworks, artefacts and heritagebuildings and sites. It is the creative industries jointlycoordinated with cultural policies that provide the strategiesto get hold of the investments to develop and promote thecultural industry in a sustainable way. The creative industriesparticipate directly into sustainable development. Thenotion of “cultural sustainable development” implies someconcepts. 46■ intergenerational equity: development must take a long-termview and not compromise the capacities of future generationsto access cultural resources and meet their culturalneeds; this requires particular concern for protecting andenhancing a nation’s tangible and intangible cultural capital.■ intragenerational equity: development must provide equity in accessto cultural production, participation and enjoyment to all membersof the community on a fair and non-discriminatory basis;in particular, attention must be paid to the poorest members ofsociety to ensure that development is consistent with the objectivesof poverty alleviation.■ importance of diversity: just as sustainable developmentrequires the protection of biodiversity, so also shouldaccount be taken of the value of cultural diversity to theprocesses of economic, social and cultural development.■ precautionary principle: when facing decisions with irreversibleconsequences, such as the destruction of cultural heritageor extinction of valued cultural practices, a risk-averseposition must be adopted.■ Interconnectedness: economic, social, cultural and environmentalsystems should not be seen in isolation; rather, a holisticapproach is required, i.e. one that recognizes interconnectedness,particularly between economic and culturaldevelopment.The contributions that artistic and cultural production,dissemination and participation make to economicempowerment, cultural enrichment and social cohesion inthe community, in order to promote major social progress,are the main reasons to support the principles of culturalsustainable development.The primary input for creative activities is creativity, anatural resource in abundance in the world. The creativeindustries production is usually less dependent on heavyindustrial infrastructure and can be easily compatible withrules and objectives that aim at environmental protection andpreservation.For ethical trade to be sustainable, producers are advisedto focus on innovation, and not only to seek out low-cost solutions.More support is needed for sustainability-relatedfinance, scaling up social entrepreneurship. 47 The creativeindustries offer a vast platform to this ethical business.There is a recent trend towards ethical consumerism.Both producers and consumers of creative products increasinglyquestion the true cultural, economic and environmentalvalue of what they create, buy and sell. In this spirit,UNCTAD has been spreading the message that creativityand biodiversity are well matched and should be seen as awin-win solution to promote responsible use of the world’sbiodiversity, while promoting the development dimension ofthe creative economy. 48 This topic is further elaboratedin chapter 2.46 Throsby (2008).47 International Trade Centre (2009).48 UNCTAD (April 2010), Creative Economy E-newsletter.26 CREATIVE ECONOMY REPORT 2010