Forum d`Avignon: Where ideas meet

We have arrived in Avignon, at the foot of the Rhône, in the venerable rooms of the Palais du Pâpe which now serve as a congress centre for the Forum d`Avignon. Culture needs the economy, but does the economy need culture?

 

The Forum D`Avignon is a dialogue platform for politicians, singers, entrepreneurs, musicians, philosophers, composers, scientists, or film directors, connecting them all. The direct exchange and the personal contact with politicians, managers, and artists are the key to a new common understanding of economy and culture.

 

Catherine Morin-Desailly, senator of the Départment Seine-Maritime, criticises that culture and economy are considered contradicting opposites far too often.

 

Dr. Philippe Mettens, chairman of the board of  BELSPO, appreciates the real encounters between all players, including their ideas, which take place here in Avignon, between the world of economy, finance, and culture. „This mix of ideas brings up other ones which are totally new.“

 

Soprano songstress Barbara Hendricks cares for a culture which is available worldwide. She enjoys the exchange with philosophers, urban developers, and artists. And she realises that we’re all worried about the same things: „We’re worried about maintaining the richness provided by our culture.“

This year, French president Nicolas Sarkozy is also attending the Forum D’Avignon.   

 

Text: Boris Alexander Knop