Mapping Cultural Data: A Cross-Country Analysis of National Cultural Statistics Frameworks in the USA, the UK, South Korea and Singapore

October 30, 2025 | 10:00 am – 11:15 am EST

Panel Convener/Chair: Dr Natalia Grinchvea

Panel Speakers:

• Professor Roland J. Kushner
• Professor Andy Pratt
• Dr Paromita Saha-Killelea
• Dr Melanie Wilmink
• Dr Natalia Grincheva
• Mika (Jaeyun) Noh
• Alexandra Olivares
• Michelle Loh

How do nations measure, value, and leverage their cultural assets in an increasingly digital and interconnected world? Despite growing recognition of culture’s role in sustainable development, the lack of harmonized metrics remains a critical barrier to cross-national and cross-institutional research. In response, the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) has spearheaded efforts to revise the 2009 Framework for Culture Statistics, developing a new 2025 version designed to standardize cultural measurement globally. This updated framework introduces a modular approach, allowing countries to adapt methodologies to their specific contexts while maintaining comparability through unified definitions and classifications (UNESCO 2025). By aligning with these efforts, this webinar presents timely findings from a comparative study analyzing cultural statistics frameworks across South Korea, Singapore, the UK, and the USA, exploring how national systems intersect with—or diverge from—global standards.

The research examines how cultural policy models, shaped by political regimes and funding mechanisms, influence what data is collected and prioritized. It investigates the infrastructures and practices governing cultural statistics, from the roles of key agencies to the frequency and methodologies of data collection. A central focus is the alignment of national frameworks with UNESCO’s Cultural Statistics Framework as well as a focused exploration of how countries track cultural value generation—from creative processes (creation, production, dissemination) to audience engagement (access, consumption, co-creation) and community involvement (preservation, revitalization, transmission).

This session is designed for policymakers, cultural practitioners, researchers, and industry leaders seeking to navigate the complexities of cultural data in a globalized context. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the institutional, political, and technical factors shaping cultural statistics—and how these systems can evolve to meet 21st-century demands.

Speaker Biographies:

Professor Andy Pratt

Andy Pratt is a UNESCO Chair of Global Creative Economy, and Emeritus Professor of Cultural Economy, City St George’s, University of London. He previously established the first Department of Culture and the Creative Industries in the world at King’s College London. He previously taught at Economic Geography at LSE, and rural planning at UCL, and has held visiting professor positions at many institutions including SMU (Singapore) and ZHdK/ETH (Zurich).
He specializes the analysis of the cultural industries globally. This research has three strands. The first focuses on the social and economic dynamics of clustering and knowledge exchange. The second strand concerns the definition and measurement of employment in the cultural, or creative, industries. The third concerns cultural governance and policy making at the national, regional and urban scales. He has worked with UNESCO, UNCTAD, WIPO, the World Bank and many national and city government on these topics

Paromita Saha-Killelea

Paromita Saha-Killelea, PhD, FRSA, is a research and strategic communications consultant specializing in the creative and cultural industries, public policy, and emerging technologies. She holds a doctorate in Mass Communication & Public Affairs and brings more than 15 years’ experience as a broadcast journalist (BBC and ITN) and communications consultant for the British Government and UK nonprofit sector
She runs PSK Research & Communications, an independent R&D consultancy that supports cultural organizations and public bodies with research-driven strategy, impact evaluation, and ethical tech integration. A rigorous mixed-methods researcher, she has contributed to international academic projects on the creative economy and media, including the impact of Brexit, austerity, and COVID-19 on the UK’s cultural and creative industries, as well as the role of AI in the cultural sector—particularly for underrepresented creative entrepreneurs across the UK and EU. She also serves on the boards of two regional festivals in Louisiana and Mississippi, USA and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Professor Roland J. Kushner

Dr. Roland J. Kushner is Professor of Business at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA, USA. He teaches strategy, management, international management, arts management, leadership, and nonprofit management. He was founding Director of Bethlehem Musikfest, Development Director for Bach Choir of Bethlehem; founder of Rose Garden Children’s Festival; and Interim Executive Director of NPR affiliate WDIY-FM. Roland is a graduate of Carleton University (Canada), with M.B.A. and Ph.D. from Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA). He researches strategic management and organizational performance in nonprofit organizations, and the economics of cultural industries. He has published numerous journal articles and book chapters, was co-author of Americans for the Arts’ National Arts Index reports (2010-2016), and author of Chorus America’s Choral Operations Survey Report (2005-2016). He has advised American Red Cross International Services, RAND, Urban Institute, and C.F. Martin & Co. In 2025, he is a Trustee of Martin Guitar Charitable Foundation, and an Executive Fellow of the Iacocca Institute of Lehigh University.

Alexandra Olivares

Alexandra Olivares is an arts administrator based in North Carolina, USA. Her focus is audience research and evaluation, leveraging qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to inform institutional strategy and drive meaningful community engagement. Her expertise is demonstrated through her published work surrounding motivations for- and barriers to arts participation and the role of cultural representation. With over a decade of experience in the museum field, she has developed innovative evaluation initiatives to systematically collect visitor data and feedback, building a deeper connection between the museum and its audience. She is a dedicated advocate for the field, currently serving as Board President of the North Carolina Museums Council. She holds a BS in Anthropology from the University of Ottawa and a Master of Public Administration from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Mika (Jaeyun) Noh

Mika (Jaeyun) Noh is a Seoul-based cultural policy strategist and AI art specialist whose work bridges government, academia, and the creative industries. She served as Legislative Director at the National Assembly of Korea, advising on cultural and digital governance, and previously worked for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on cultural innovation policy. Mika is the Chair of the AI Art Forum (AIAF), leading international dialogue on ethical AI, cultural infrastructure, and the future of creative labor. She also directs institutional partnerships at Niio Art, a global media art platform, and founded Space Ba, a curatorial studio fostering cross-sector collaborations in urban regeneration, public institutions, and media art. Her writings on cultural policy and technology appear in Artsy and academic outlets. She holds an MA in Arts Management from Korea National University of Arts and an LLB from Ewha Womans University.

Dr Melanie Wilmink

Melanie Wilmink is a researcher and curator who examines the spectatorial dynamics of media art environments. She completed her PhD in Visual Art & Art History at York University (Canada) and she was a recipient of the 2022 Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship for her research on “The art of the Korean smart city.” Her ongoing research emerged through her independent curating practice and research creation. Past exhibitions include: Art Beyond Humanity: AI x human collaborations (Yonsei University, 2023), Re[new]All (Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts & Technology, 2021), and the Winter Warmer (Sidewalk Labs Toronto, 2019). Wilmink has published two co-edited anthologies Sculpting Cinema (2018) and Landscapes of Moving Image (2021) with Solomon Nagler, and she is an Assistant Professor in Global Media Studies at Woosong University (South Korea). www.melaniewilmink.com.

Dr Natalia Grincheva

Dr Natalia Grincheva is a Program Leader in Arts Management at LASALLE, University of Arts Singapore, and an Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the Digital Studio at the University of Melbourne. She is an internationally recognized expert on innovative forms and global trends in contemporary museology, digital diplomacy and international cultural relations. She is the author of three monographs Geopolitics of Digital Heritage (Cambridge University Press: 2024), Museum Diplomacy in the Digital Age (Routledge: 2020) and Global Trends in Museum Diplomacy (Routledge: 2019). Now she is working on a new monograph, Digital Soft Power of Heritage Media, to be published with Cambridge University Press. She is also a conceptual designer of the Data To Power application, developed for academic inductive research to facilitate the exploration of complex global phenomena through data visualization, mapping, and interactive data storytelling.

Michelle Loh

Michelle Loh is a Lecturer with LASALLE College of the Arts, University of the Arts Singapore.. Her research in Singapore cultural policies has been published by the Commonwealth Foundation and European Network on Cultural Management and Policy, recent publications include Kenneth Kwok (Ministry of National Development, Singapore): in conversation (Cultural Trends: 2023), Superdiversity and Cultural Policies in Post-Pandemic Singapore (ENCATC: 2022), Language: Audiences for Singapore’s Poetry Festival (Routledge: 2022). She was co-editor and Principal Investigator for Traditional Chinese Music in Contemporary Singapore (Pagesetters: 2020) which was awarded the NAC Research and Development Grant and the LASALLE Major Project Fund. Michelle was awarded the LASALLE Academic Qualifications Fund for her doctoral studies on “Evolution of Multiculturalism and Cultural Policies in Singapore” with University of Western Australia. She is also one of the co-founders of Poetry Festival Singapore and has worked with National University of Singapore Centre For the Arts, International Intelligence on Culture London and Tate Britain.