CRAFTOUR General Conference
European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium - 30 January 2026
From evidence to action for European crafts
On 30 January 2026, the CRAFTOUR General Conference was held at the European Parliament, marking a decisive moment in the initiative’s journey from research and dialogue to structured policy engagement.
Hosted by Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, Member of the European Parliament, and opened together with representatives of the European Commission and the Research Executive Agency, the conference presented the first consolidated policy evidence emerging from CRAFTOUR and engaged European policymakers in a direct exchange on the future of the crafts sector.
Bringing together crafts professionals, educators, researchers, heritage stakeholders and institutional representatives, the event demonstrated the strategic relevance of crafts for cultural heritage, skills development, sustainability, territorial cohesion and European competitiveness.
Built on three milestones
The General Conference was the culmination of a structured trajectory:
The Policy Round Table at the European Commission (10 December 2025), where initial recommendations were presented
The Scientific Conference in Antwerp (29 January 2026), which consolidated research evidence and will contribute to a forthcoming peer-reviewed publication
The General Conference at the European Parliament, translating evidence into policy dialogue
This sequence reflects CRAFTOUR’s methodological approach: bottom-up, evidence-based, and rooted in collaboration between practitioners and researchers.
Why crafts matter at the European level
Throughout the conference, speakers provided converging evidence that crafts are not a niche activity, but a cross-sector ecosystem interconnected with:
- Traditional and sustainable building
- Historic monument conservation
- Fashion, luxury and interior design
- Music, instrument making and performing arts
- Tourism and local development
The first panel clearly demonstrated that crafts function as a critical infrastructure supporting multiple European value chains.
Speakers: Alfonso Pallavicini, President of European Historic Houses . Sébastien Mainil, Director Awap / La Paix Dieu School & Pôle de La Pierre. Hugh Roche Kelly, Independent Woodturner and Head of Workshop at Sonian, Brussels. Evy Lenoir, Roofer and President of Union des Artisans du Patrimoine (UAP). Laura Miguel Baumann, Secretary General of European Crafts Alliance
The second panel focused on crafts’ societal impact, highlighting their contribution to:
- Tangible and intangible heritage safeguarding
- Territorial identity and cultural diversity
- Social cohesion
- Employment, entrepreneurship and competitiveness
A recurring message emerged, while national evidence confirms the strong economic and social impact of crafts, the absence of comparable European-level data severely limits effective policymaking.
Speakers: Lodovico Folin, UNESCO Representative to the EU. Xavier Long, Deputy General Manager of the Institut des Savoir Faires Français . Audrey Aubard, Secretary General, FFIGIA. Calum Iain Maciver, Chief Executive of the Harris Tweed Authority . Fabrizio Panozzo, Professor of Cultural Policies, Ca’Foscari University
Key conclusions
The conference concluded that:
Crafts remain highly fragmented at European level despite their strategic importance
Coordinated evidence-gathering delivers rapid and meaningful results
Policy impact is strongest when practitioners are recognised as key actors of change
Continued European support is essential to consolidate and scale this work.
CRAFTOUR partners reaffirmed their collective commitment to deepen cooperation and continue building a coherent European framework for crafts.
To effectively communicate complex Policy Recommendations to the conference audience, these insights were transformed into two visually engaging storytelling videos. Each video focused on a specific set of recommendations.
Continuing the conversation
Following the CRAFTOUR General Conference, a podcast interview was recorded with Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, Member of the European Parliament, focusing on the realities, challenges and future of the crafts sector in Europe. The discussion featured invited speakers from the CRAFTOUR General Conference, including Madina Benvenuti – coordinator of the CRAFTOUR Initiative and Managing Director of Mad’in Europe, Audrey Aubard – Secretary General of FFIGIA and Hugh Roche Kelly – Independent Woodturner and Head of Workshop at Sonian Brussels. The interview was conducted and moderated by Emily Keane, whose questions helped deepen the conversation on the role of crafts within European frameworks, ranging from competitiveness and the green transition to innovation and heritage.
