By Professor Murray Pittock, Pro Vice-Principal (Special Projects) at the University of Glasgow

THE cultural and creative industries (which range from advertising through broadcasting, design, museums and galleries to music and the performing arts) are central to the modern advanced economy, and particularly to the economies of small countries, for which culture is a precious asset in the creation of their international brand.

But culture does much more than this: it promotes health and well-being, boosts self-respect and confidence in communities and brings tourist business. Cultural tourists spend about a third more than average. Moreover, as cities across the globe experience rebirth as economic hubs, the evidence is that cultural resources and cultural businesses drive the innovation on which that growth depends, with the cultural and creative industries adding value to the economy at around twice the level of the average business. And Dublin and Glasgow are both leading European cities for these industries.

As Glasgow’s City Region deal and the University of Glasgow’s new campus development continue to move forward, it is thus the right time to bring some of the key players in these industries together to discuss where we are at, how we got here and where we are going. Glasgow has experienced a renaissance through culture in the last30 years, while Dublin has initiated outstanding work through its decade-old Creativity and the City Report and the work of the Creative Dublin Alliance and other bodies.

Both cities are good at leveraging their universities and their expertise to contribute to the economy and national and civic facilities. Both have a strong tourist industry, with many leading attractions. And both are centres of innovation and education, with more than 10 000 students studying in cultural and creative economy related areas in Glasgow’s universities, and major research facilities such as CREATe (the UK Copyright and Creative Economy Centre) and the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre among recent major initiatives in which the University of Glasgow is strongly engaged, while both the University and the Glasgow School of Art have major strengths in Virtual and Augmented Reality research, which is likely to expand greatly in the years to come, with the immersive reality market worldwide estimated at £100 billion in 2020.

Digital technology is regarded as essential by 53 per cent of creative industry businesses, up over half since 2013, and demand for digital skills is rising all the time, with 55 per cent of arts and culture organisations reporting a recruitment skills gap in these areas. The rollout of 5G will only intensify these requirements in the industries that benefit from it. In addition, the additional investment from the BBC in Scotland and Glasgow’s location as the new Channel 4 Creative Hub will reinforce the creative capacity of the University and city of Glasgow in a wider context.

The Dublin-Glasgow Summit of this coming Friday will explore these issues and will initiate discussions on opportunities for future collaborative working at a city, university and institutional level. The event is hosted by the Scottish Government Hub in Ireland, led by John Webster, and is supported by the British Embassy in Dublin. It will include city, academic, broadcaster, digital business and cultural institution representation, and promises to extend our understanding of what is possible in this very exciting area of the economy, whose contribution to our wealth and sense of well-being is often underestimated.

Professor Murray Pittock is organiser of the Dublin-Glasgow Summit.