Following a very thought provoking workshop at the Institute for Government last week, I have begun to crystallize thoughts that have been around since the 2008 financial crisis.

At the time I was especially conscious of the funding timescales of public bodies and it was quite obvious that the financial crisis would hit the public sector some 18-24 months after the banking sector. We are currently in the first, and by no means last, throes of this. 

Without being intentionally Leninist, what is to be done? 

The Creative Economy Report 2010 from the UN is the second policy-oriented report to present the United Nations perspective on this topic.  The creative economy is now a topic high on the agenda for economic development in both the developed and the developing world.  As the report puts it,

'adequately nurtured, creativity fuels culture, infuses a human centred development and consitutes the key ingredient for job creation, innovation and trade while contributing to social inclusion, cultural diversity and environmental sustainability.'

X-PLOIT  is a European Project on Training and Lifelong Learning activities promoted by the European Commission within the Lifelong Learning Program and co-ordinated by the Aarhus Social and Health Care College, Denmark.

The main objective of the project is to create a Network of Learning Cities that, by sharing their experiences, tools and knowledge, will be able to promote a more effective and cohesive planning of lifelong learning initiatives and programs at a local level, to better meet the needs of citizens and to more efficiently allocate resources.

Some useful resources on Lifelong Learning, many in French, can be found at http://lllearning.free-h.net/