Developing skills to unlock the innovative potential of our ecosystem
Despite the high quality of creative talent within the CCSI in Europe, many professionals lack entrepreneurial, financial management, technical, cross-cutting and technological skills. Recent data shows that self-employment averages for cultural workers (32%), and artists and writers (46%), are well above the EU self-employment average for all sectors (14%). For these individuals, the lack of entrepreneurial skills limits their ability to keep up with competitors around the globe that innovate and scale better. At the same time, market, technology disruptions, and larger challenges such as the green and digital transition, require CCSI companies, which are often micro-enterprises, to adapt and become a more versatile workforce capable of mastering new technical and ‘hands-on’ skills. On top of that, the social dimension of the CCSI sectors is often overlooked and therefore requires specific skills to deal with issues such as digital ethics, responsible technology, social exclusion, and the authenticity of online content.
In EIT Culture & Creativity’s Strategic Agenda (2024-2027), we target skills gaps across five strategic areas of intervention:
- in fashion we seek to provide specialist skills and expertise to assist the sector in innovating and delivering strategic change towards a more circular, digital, and sustainable model.
- in architecture we wish to address the demand both for practicing and young architects to learn more about reusing and renovating existing buildings through courses in regenerative architecture and bio-design. There is also a lack of entrepreneurial skills for graduating architects to work as independent entrepreneurs.
- in cultural heritage we wish to address disappearing traditional knowledge and craft skills, along with limited skills for emerging technologies and entrepreneurship in the sector.
- in audio-visual media specific skills related to the disruptions in the sector need to be addressed, including skills related to data, supercomputing, cloud computing, IP protection, monetising IP in the era of AI, and using AI in AVM. There is also a need for skills related to the social aspects of the AVM sector and its impact on people and the planet.
- to maintain and grow the EU gaming market share, access to talent is the main challenge. This not only relates to game industry curricula but also to synergies with related sectors and related technology studies. We wish to support the sector through courses in game making, business creation and entrepreneurship.
By strengthening the entrepreneurial and crosscutting skills of CCSI students and professionals, EIT CC addresses its mission to address sector-specific challenges in education, innovation, and business creation, while fostering interdisciplinary and cross-sector collaboration. In this way, EIT Culture & Creativity unlocks the innovative potential of its fragmented ecosystem, contributing to Europe’s triple transition and accelerating competitive and resilient cultural and creative entrepreneurship.
Initiatives such as Creative Skills Week are central to this ambition — we look forward to seeing you in Amsterdam!
Dr Rolf Hughes
Education Director
17 September 2024
