Last February we hosted the yearly Member Meeting we organize as a chance for our members to kickstart their year with some intensive networking and inspired by their peers. Taking place in the beautiful Sommerset House in London, we were happy to welcome more members, more organisations and more nationalities than ever: 20 members from 11 countries came together to meet, share their best ideas and of course steer the direction of our network in the coming years.

This year a new executive board and managing director were appointed and tasked with the network’s new strategy for 2017, which will focus around the implementation of services targetting “creative mulitpliers”: national, regional or local bodies, public or private, who work to support and multiply the potential of the creative industries. ECBN will henceforth focus on empowering these organisations by equipping them with new knowledge, new contacts and new opportunities to collaborate. It is our vision that by empowering the multipliers we empower the sector as a whole.

This task is to be carried out under the supervision of a new executive board bursting with experience, acumen and passion for our field:

Caroline Norbury, CEO Creative England, London (Co-Chair)

Bernd Fesel, Senior Advisor european centre for creative economy, Dortmund (Co-Chair)

Michal Hlady, Director of Creative Industries Kosice, Kosice

Mehjabeen Patrick, CFO Creative England, London

Gerin Trautenberger, President Kreativwirtschaft Austria, Vienna

 

The attending Board Members and new Managing Director

 

Adrian Sneeuw was elected new managing director, following Bernd Fesel and Leo van Loon. Adrian Sneeuw has been successfully managing ECBN’s operations between 2014 – 2015. After taking a gap year to establish the trendsetting “Makerversity” in Amsterdam, he returns to ECBN as managing director, tasked with the execution of the new strategy set out by the members.

In 2017 ECBN will focus on the implementation of new member services: know-how tansfer, professional training, international exchanges and access to eu-funding. Our advocacy work will continue focusing on the topic Spillover-Effects and Innovation and the European Funds for Strategic Investments. Particular attention this year will be paid to the search for a new narrative for the Cultural and Creative Sectors that better conveys the sector’s nature as the leading driver for the future of society and economy. ECBN aims to keep cultural and creative sectors on a level playing field with the new societal shifts Internet 4.0 and Start-Up Economy.