COUNTERING POLARIZATION – RETHINKING CULTURAL DIPLOMACY

Join a high-level conference on who shapes the story of Europe — and how cultural relations can counter division

Fællessalen, Christiansborg, 28 May 2026, 10.00-14.00 (CET)

Danish Cultural Institute, The Danish Foreign Policy Society, Dansk Kulturliv, and Constructive Institute are hosting an international conference on cultural diplomacy in a new geopolitical reality.

Place and time

Fællessalen, Christiansborg

28 May 2026, 10.00–14.00 (CET)

The conference will be held in English.

Programme

Find the full programme, here

Registration

In person (fully booked)

Register on our waiting list, here

Livestream

If you cannot attend in person, you can register for the livestream, here

About the conference

The conference “Countering Polarization: Rethinking Cultural Diplomacy” explores how Europe can strengthen trust and relations in an era marked by polarization, war, and geopolitical tensions. The conference is grounded in the need to rethink cultural diplomacy as a fundamental condition for long-term relations within a complex interplay between foreign policy, media, and culture.

Join us for a day of keynote speeches, panel discussions, and artistic performances, where prominent voices from Denmark and abroad come together across Danish, Nordic, and European perspectives.

Speakers

Anni Syrjäläinen, Deputy Director, Nordic Culture Fund

Bjarne Corydon, Director General, DR

Camilla Mordhorst, CEO, Danish Cultural Institute

Charlotte Flindt Pedersen, Director, The Danish Foreign Policy Society

Emile Hertling Péronard, Producer and Co-Owner, Ánorâk Film

Flemming Møller Mortensen, Member of Parliament (S)

Helle Faber, Producer on the Academy Award-winning “Mr. Nobody Against Putin”

Ingrid Tinmannsvik, Co-founder, Demo

Jakob Sørensen, Director, Dansk Kulturliv

Julija Reklaitė, Director, Lithuanian Culture Institute

Karen Ellemann, Secretary General, The Nordic Council of Ministers

Kasper Holten, CEO, The Royal Danish Theatre

Lars Ebert, Secretary General, Culture Action Europe

Naima Yasin, Head of Secretariat, SAGA

Sine Plambech, Senior Researcher, DIIS – Danish Institute for International Studies

Ulrik Haagerup, CEO, Constructive Institute

Reading

Poet and winner of The European Poet of Freedom Award 2026, Amina Elmi will open the conference with a reading.

Host:

Moussa Mchangama, Senior Advisor and Co-Founder of In Futurum

Read more about all speakers, here

Registration

In person (fully booked)

Register on our waiting list, here

Livestream

If you cannot attend in person, you can register for the livestream, here