In Lithuania, the issue of social inclusion and cohesion is mainly related in cultural policy to the equal opportunities of different social groups and inhabitants of different regions to participate in cultural life, i.e. cultural participation is considered an important factor of social inclusion and cohesion. The Lithuanian Cultural Policy Strategy 2030 argues to be a positive correlation between active participation in cultural life and a higher quality of personal and social life: people engaged in cultural and creative activities have more trust in other people, they participate more actively in elections, have stronger and more conscious civic identity, feel happier and healthier. Hence, one of the tasks of the Strategy is “to promote the equal accessibility of high quality and various forms of culture for diverse social groups”.
In 2018, in order to improve the accessibility of culture in regions and the development of diversity of local cultural expressions, the Lithuanian Council for Culture created the model of support for Even Cultural Development. The main idea of the model is to create 10 Regional Councils for Culture, which decide independently on funding of cultural projects through local calls for tenders. The Regional Councils for Culture are formed of representatives of regional municipalities, representatives of regional arts and culture organisations and one delegate of the Lithuanian Council for Culture, who does not have voting rights. Each Regional Council forms its own funding priorities reflecting the situation of local cultural communities, infrastructure and potential. The aim of the model is to decentralise cultural funding decisions, enable regions to decide independently on the implementation of cultural and artistic projects that are important for them, and involve local communities, creators and municipalities in decision-making processes. In 2020 – 2025, the Lithuanian Council for Culture granted 19.5 million euros for 3387 projects of regions.
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