Thoughts and reflection by Urška Dolinar, Co-founder and Director, Iskriva Institute
“In recent years, Europe has been undergoing an important shift. We are speaking less and less solely about investments, infrastructure, and visitor numbers, and increasingly about quality of life, the identity of places, and the sense of belonging. This is precisely why culture is becoming one of the key development priorities of the future.
Culture is often primarily understood as a field of art, heritage, and events. Today, however, Europe understands it in a much broader sense—as a way in which communities live, collaborate, create, and shape the spaces around them. This shift is also reflected in European policies. One of the key frameworks of this new approach is the New European Bauhaus initiative, which promotes the idea that future investments should not only be green and digital, but also beautiful, inclusive, and human-centred. The EU Council has also adopted new recommendations this year to strengthen this approach in the renovation of urban and rural areas: Council of the EU Recommendations on the New European Bauhaus.
Today, the cultural and creative sectors generate around 5% of the EU’s GDP and employ more than 7 million people, while cultural tourism accounts for nearly 40% of European tourism. Yet culture’s greatest strength lies in its deeper contribution: helping to create places that are more attractive, innovative, and socially connected.
This is also the development approach of Iskriva Institute. We see our role in enabling and accelerating local development: helping local environments access investment funding, bring in new knowledge, and connect international partners. Above all, we help establish local teams, processes, and (business) collaborations that can turn investment into long-term value for the community. Field experience consistently confirms that infrastructure alone does not generate development—development happens when a place gains content, motivated people, and energy.
This is clearly visible in Ravne na Koroškem, where the Old Ironworks is gradually being transformed into a modern cultural and development hub. In the past three years, several buildings have been revitalised, a network of more than 100 partners has been established, and over €3 million in development funding has been secured. In the past year alone, programme activities generated nearly €100,000 in local revenue and attracted more than 3,000 visitors within six months.
An important part of this development is also the increasingly close connection between culture and experiential tourism, for example through the Danube Festival Caravan, which connects festivals and communities of the Danube region into a shared story of sustainable cultural tourism. You are warmly invited to Fabrika Fest, where musical and thematic experiences will take place in Ravne na Koroškem from 21 to 23 June 2026.
A similar development shift can also be seen in the Amazon of Europe cycling route destination, where a 1,250-kilometre international cycling route is evolving into a broader model of inclusive tourism. More than 150 providers across five countries are involved, and approaches to involving vulnerable groups will be presented at the final conference of the Inclusive Border Cycling project, taking place in Hungary on 23–24 June 2026.
At the other end of Slovenia, such authentic experiences that are also accessible to people with different disabilities are already available for booking: Accessible Slovenia – Wine Tasting Brda. These examples demonstrate that inclusion is not only a social responsibility, but also a development and business opportunity.
In upcoming contributions, we will present a series of events that demonstrate that culture today is no longer just a companion to development, but one of its key driving forces.
