6th ANCER Conference

Shaping Asia’s Creative Futures: Cultural Relations, Technologies, and the Commons
12-14 December 2025
The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR

The 6th ANCER Conference is co-organised by the MA in Cultural Management Programme, Department of Cultural and Religious Studies, CUHK, and the MA Arts & Cultural Leadership Programme, Faculty of Fine Arts Media and Creative Industries, LASALLE College of the Arts, University of the Arts Singapore.

CONFERENCE THEME

We are living in a time where geopolitical upheavals, economic shifts, new cultural forms and accelerating technological change, are redefining how we work, connect, and create meaning in society. Technological innovations and the rapid advancements of the information society demand evolution from the traditional functions of management to becoming more reflexive and adaptable, working in global contexts that are transnational and transdisciplinary. The structures of cultural governance are being critically challenged by the need to become more inclusive, just, and participatory, while expanded notions of what constitutes “art” and “culture” are reshaping the practices in arts and cultural management. As trust in traditional systems is eroding or being challenged, an understanding of new practices or frameworks are needed. To be an arts manager or creative practitioner today requires an acute awareness of these interrelated forces and a commitment to fostering more equitable and sustainable creative futures.

The 6th ANCER Conference is held in Hong Kong and will have a special focus on East Asian perspectives in cultural management and the creative economy. How is cultural policy in Asia responding to current trends and cultural practices, and what can we learn from each other? How do digital culture and technological innovation impact arts management practice and creative pedagogy? How can sustainability and civil-society led practices of self-organisation, solidarity and communing contribute to the shaping of policy and the urban environment? What new relationships define the arts and cultural sectors and how do cultural practitioners work across borders?

Join us for two days of keynote speakers, curated panels on the themes of cultural relations, technologies and the commons, workshops, and sessions for emerging scholars. A cultural tour for international participants is offered on day 3 (spaces are limited and on a first come first served basis).

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION

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