Connecting in a changed world

“Think global, act local” is an adage close to the heart of not only our Festivals family but also all citizens of Edinburgh, coming as it does from the thinking of Scottish town planner and social activist Patrick Geddes.

And for our Festival Directors, the principles at the heart of this adage - connecting with international peers and enriching local communities - were brought in to stark relief as they set about programming for their events in 2021 and thought about the longer term implications for their Festival.

Using the framework of our Momentum programme - the festivals' collective delegate programme, delivered in partnership with Creative Scotland and British Council Scotland - we were able to identify the three questions which international delegates and the wider Scottish cultural sector wanted to ask our Festival Directors about their programming.

1. How does it feel for Edinburgh Festivals to reconnect with audiences and artists in new ways in 2021?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1WS1eDVC-M

2. How are the Edinburgh Festivals connecting with local audiences and communities in a changed world?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgSQwHHvykM&t=2s

3. What are the Edinburgh Festivals ambitions for international connections in a changed world?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPZ-K4aRhSQ

The thoughts of our Festival Directors can be seen in Festival City Vision to 2030 - our recently published vision of what a world leading sustainable festival city might look like in 2030 - where the two principles Inspire Everyone and Global Solidarity can be cleared traced to such thinking.

It is our collective belief that working together on a local and global scale enriches our impact at both home and abroad, ensuring he success of our festivals for the generations to come.