The European Cultural and Creative Sectors (ICC) stand at a crucial crossroads. Rich in heritage, imagination, and human capital, this vibrant ecosystem is simultaneously facing unprecedented challenges: a digital revolution that reshapes creation and consumption and the urgent demand for sustainability and inclusion driven by the European Green Deal. To navigate this twin transition, the ICC actors must do more than adapt; they must become proactive Agents of Change.
The NEBCOMP framework
The New European Bauhaus (NEB) is the EU’s visionary initiative connecting the European Green Deal to our daily lives, urging us to build a future that is beautiful, sustainable, and inclusive. For the ICC sector, this is not just a political framework, it is an invitation to take centre stage. Culture and creativity are the very bridge between technology, science, and the lived experience, making ICC professionals essential catalysts for societal change.
However, many professionals in the sector—often comprised of small, micro-enterprises and freelancers—lack the specific, interdisciplinary skills needed to fully embrace the NEB’s values and integrate them into their practices. This is where NEBCOMP, the competence framework for the New European Bauhaus developed within the framework of Agents of Change project, becomes important.
The NEBCOMP Blueprint: Four Pillars of Transformation
NEBCOMP outlines the essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes that cultural and creative professionals need to thrive as Agents of Change. As illustrated in the framework, the path to upskilling is broken down into four synergistic competence areas, each addressing a key challenge for the ICC.
- Sustainable environment: This pillar moves beyond simple ‘green’ awareness to demand Circular thinking, the adoption of the NEB system, and fostering Creative innovation. For the ICC, this means designing exhibitions with minimal waste, repurposing materials in architecture and fashion, and developing business models that are inherently regenerative. In short, it is about ensuring creative work contributes positively to the planet’s boundaries.
- Inclusive co-creation: The ICC sector must move away from traditional, top-down approaches. This area stresses Cultural diversity, Emphatic leadership, Cultural accessibility, and Collaborative strategies. True change is co-created. Professionals must learn to engage diverse communities, ensuring cultural offerings are affordable, physically and digitally accessible, and reflect the full spectrum of European societies. This combats the risk of exclusion often associated with rapid technological and environmental shifts and ensures that creative practices bring about a real societal value.
- Aesthetic exploration: This is the core strength of the ICC, but it must be refocused. This NEBCOMP pillar calls for leveraging Cultural heritage, driving Creative experimentation, and finding Meaningful value. In short, this is where ‘beauty’ meets ‘purpose’. ICC professionals are uniquely positioned to give meaning, emotion, and local distinctiveness to sustainable and inclusive solutions, ensuring that the green transition is desirable and not just required.
- Embracing the NEB: Finally, this pillar focuses on the practical application of change-making skills, including Change management, Audience education, Digital and media literacy, and the ability to Navigate the NEB. This is crucial for tackling the digital transition, as it equips professionals to utilise new technologies like AI and VR responsibly, educate their audiences on NEB values, and effectively manage projects in an increasingly complex, transdisciplinary environment.
The Urgency of Upskilling
The ICC sector’s future success—and its ability to shape Europe’s—is tied directly to adopting these competencies.
Facing Digital Disruption
Digitalisation offers immense potential for reaching new audiences and revenue streams, but it also creates a skills gap. Many micro-organisations struggle with data management, AI ethics, and simply understanding how to maximise digital platforms. NEBCOMP’s focus on Digital and media literacy provides the necessary foundation to turn the digital threat into an opportunity for greater visibility and sustainability.
Addressing Systemic Change
Traditional business models in the cultural sector are strained. Funding is often precarious, and competition for attention is fierce. By integrating NEBCOMP’s principles, particularly Circular thinking and new Business practices, ICC professionals can develop resilient, diversified, and ethical revenue streams.
Becoming True Leaders
Ultimately, the NEB is a cultural project. It requires professionals who can lead by example. Upskilling through NEBCOMP transforms the ICC worker from a passive recipient of policy into an active designer of our shared future. By mastering Emphatic leadership and Collaborative strategies, they can broker dialogues between citizens, policymakers, scientists, and businesses alike, translating complex sustainability goals into tangible, locally relevant, and beautiful solutions that truly resonate with local communities.
The Path Forward
The need is clear: for the EU-based ICC sector to survive, thrive, and lead the movement for a beautiful, sustainable, and inclusive Europe, a committed investment in NEBCOMP upskilling is essential. By mastering these four competency areas, ICC professionals will secure their own future and, more importantly, prove their vital role in shaping the collective European dream, truly earning the title of Agents of Change.
Written by Ipogeos, Matera, Italy