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A global, year-round celebration of the world’s culture, created by the Khalili Foundation, culminating in the UN World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development on 21st May.
The World Festival of Cultural Diversity is a global, synchronised celebration of cultural diversity supported by UNESCO. It is a year-round programme of events and activities leading up to the UN World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development on 21st May.
The Festival is created and coordinated by the Khalili Foundation to spotlight efforts around the world to preserve and promote cultural diversity, especially through the cultural sector.
Cultural institutions from around the world participate. Details of Festival events worldwide will shortly be placed on the map below
Special Festival section on GA&C spotlighting various technological features and digital exhibits that showcase the world’s cultural expressions.
A campaign to tackle the cultural bias on Wikipedia including the engagement of non-Western cultural institutions to digitize and release more content on open access.
Six stellar panel discussions (webinars) over 12 months exploring how cross-cultural dialogue can be fostered through communities, education, the arts, workplaces, activism and policy-making.
Special event on the World Day of Cultural Diversity (May 21st 2023) at the UNESCO HQ in Paris. This will include talks, performances, film screenings, a reception and fundraising dinner.
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A Festival of ideas with the theme of “thinking through music” drawing from world music, dnace, film and visual arts.
Special Festival section on the Europeana platform, bringing together stories of European culture in all its diversity.
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A series of lectures that explore the story and evolution of science throughout history and in different cultural contexts.
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An architectural design competition for resilient and adaptable houses that advance, adapt and update specific local building traditions to meet 21st century needs.
An intercultural research project looking at how deliberate spaces can be created for greater cross-cultural dialogue and peacebuilding
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A short film to show how young people in the UK are using global citizenship to advance their career and learning opportunities.
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Special Festival section on GA&C spotlighting various technological features and digital exhibits that showcase the world’s cultural expressions.
Learn More
A campaign to tackle the cultural bias on Wikipedia including the engagement of non-Western cultural institutions to digitize and release more content on open access.
Learn More
Six stellar panel discussions (webinars) over 12 months exploring how cross-cultural dialogue can be fostered through communities, education, the arts, workplaces, activism and policy-making.
Learn More
Special event on the World Day of Cultural Diversity (May 21st 2023) at the UNESCO HQ in Paris. This will include talks, performances, film screenings, a reception and fundraising dinner.
Learn More
A Festival of ideas with the theme of “thinking through music” drawing from world music, dnace, film and visual arts.
Learn More
Special Festival section on the Europeana platform, bringing together stories of European culture in all its diversity.
Learn More
A series of lectures that explore the story and evolution of science throughout history and in different cultural contexts.
Learn More
An architectural design competition for resilient and adaptable houses that advance, adapt and update specific local building traditions to meet 21st century needs.
Learn More
An intercultural research project looking at how deliberate spaces can be created for greater cross-cultural dialogue and peacebuilding
Learn More
A short film to show how young people in the UK are using global citizenship to advance their career and learning opportunities.
Learn More
SOAS Festival of Ideas
As part of the World Festival of Cultural Diversity, the SOAS Festival of Ideas will be themed “Thinking through Music” and will involve leading musicians around the world such as the Malian kora player Ballaké Sissoko.
Aspen UK Webinar Series
As part of the World Festival of Cultural Diversity, Aspen UK is hosting 6 webinars during the course of the year, each exploring Cultural Diversity in different areas of modern life with some of the leading thinkers and practitioners in each area.
INTBAU Architectural Design Challenge
As part of the World Festival of Cultural Diversity, INTBAU is organising an architectural design competition for resilient and adaptable houses that advance, adapt and update specific local building traditions to meet 21st century needs.
Diversification of Cultural Content on Wikipedia
Wikimedia UK, with the support of the Khalili Foundation, has initiated a global movement to make Wikipedia more inclusive by integrating content from underrepresented cultures through institutional partnerships and editathons.
Europeana Spotlights Stories of Cultural Diversity Online
Europeana celebrates the World Festival of Cultural Diversity with a dedicated platform curating stories relating to the diversity of cultural expressions across Europe.
The themes explored are set by the recently published Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity 20th anniversary book, published by the Khalili Foundation. You can learn more here.
Over the coming months, we are working with Aspen Institute UK to arrange 6 seminal webinars, each with a stellar panel discussing a particular aspect of cultural diversity. These include:
We encourage you to nominate your exhibition, performance, lecture or special event to be part of the World Festival of Cultural Diversity.
We encourage you to nominate your exhibition, performance, lecture or special event to be part of the World Festival of Cultural Diversity.
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