At the end of September, a two-day multidisciplinary scientific conference "Creative Future Insights 2025 - Creativity of Othering in the Age of Migration" was held, which was officially opened at VERN' University on September 18. The event brought together numerous experts from the fields of diplomacy and creative industries, as well as renowned keynote speakers and representatives of the academic and business community, who during two days discussed the development and perspective of creative industries in the context of migration and cultural mixing.
Rector of VERN' University, Prof. Dr. Sc. Vedran Mornar, pointed out at the opening that holding a conference on this topic is an incentive for the integration of other cultures into Croatian society, so that they contribute to overall growth and development. "Migration can also have positive effects. Can anyone imagine what the USA would look like today without immigrants - those first 12 million who stepped foot on Ellis Island in New York - and whose descendants today make up almost 40 percent of the American population."
The Director of the Institute of Economics, Zagreb, Dr. sc. Ivana Rašić , said that the conference will enable a dialogue on the most important topics related to the acceptance of other cultures and creativity. These topics are also important in the Croatian context, since migration and diversity shape the social and cultural environment. "Creativity has the potential to open up space for inclusion, and migrants and minorities can have a positive impact on breaking stereotypes through the enrichment of artistic and cultural production."
Introductory speeches on the first day were given by Zoilo A. Velasco , Deputy Head of Mission and Consul General of the Republic of the Philippines in the Republic of Croatia, and Putri Hany Regita Simangunsong , Head of Media and Socio-Cultural Issues at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in the Republic of Croatia.
"Migration is not a phenomenon, but a reality experienced by more than 280 million people around the world. However, it should be seen as a driver of progress and development, because the contribution of migrants to some economies and societies is undeniable today. More than 15,000 Filipino workers work in Croatia today, mostly in the service sector," said Zoilo A. Velasco .
"Our embassy is trying to create various cooperation programs to bring Indonesian culture closer to Croatian citizens. So far, we have opened a cultural center in Zagreb, where citizens can learn about our language, culture and music, then we organized the promotion of our coffees, a workshop on the production of traditional clothing - batik, the promotion of traditional instruments - gamelan, and we have been guests in many schools," said Putri Hany Regita Simangunsong .
At the panel discussion titled " Between Inspiration and Exclusion: Experiences of Othering in Croatia's Creative Sector" , Luis Camacho Montealegre , a musician from Spain, and Viktor Szabó , a professional dancer from Hungary, shared their impressions of cooperation within the Croatian creative industries sector, and the conversation was moderated by Vjekoslav Blazsetin from the Institute for Migration Research .
The two-day scientific conference "Creative Future Insights 2025 - Creativity of Othering in the Age of Migration" was jointly organized by VERN University and the Institute of Economics, Zagreb (EIZ) in partnership with the Migration Research Institute. For this reason, EIZ hosted the second day of the program and panel discussion entitled "Transcultural Creativity: Design Through Migration" .
More detailed information about the CFI 2025 conference is available on the official website creativefutureinsights.vern.hr/
