Leading the way in analysis, research, and innovation in culture, and creating spaces for participation and debate, are among the priorities of Jerez’s candidacy to become the European Capital of Culture 2031. In this context, the bid has promoted the launch of Issue 26 of the International Journal of Periférica, coordinated by the University of Cádiz. The event, held this afternoon at the Chamber of Commerce Coworking Space, was attended by the Urbanism Delegate of the Jerez City Council, Belén de la Cuadra, and the Vice-Rector for Sustainability and Culture at the University of Cádiz, Gonzalo Sánchez.
During the presentation of the contents of the new edition of this renowned publication, which received the Andalusia Culture Prize last November, participants included its director, Antonio Javier González; José María Lasalle, consultant in technological humanism and professor at ICADE; and journalist María Ángeles Robles, author of “Living in Culture: 25 Years of Periférica Internacional.” This special edition, which highlights the key aspects of the trajectory of a leading magazine in the reflection and analysis of cultural processes, was also presented during the event.
Issue number 26 of Periférica Internacional, published under the theme “Perseverance in the Face of Uncertainty,” presents itself as a critical roadmap for understanding a constantly evolving cultural ecosystem. This edition of the leading journal on cultural policy and management features a contribution from philosopher Víctor Gómez Pin, who reflects on human singularity in the face of advancing Artificial Intelligence. This debate is complemented by an analysis of the new Cultural Rights Plan in Spain and a chronicle of the multilateral shift at Mondiacult 2025.
Throughout its pages, readers, professionals, and researchers will also find bold proposals on topics as diverse as the artistic status of video games, the crisis of rigidity in higher music education, and the transformation of institutions into centers of social innovation. Ultimately, this issue reaffirms the publication’s commitment to a culture that is not merely ornamental, but a fundamental right and a global public good essential for the democratic health of citizens.
At the same time, the event also included the presentation of the commemorative book “Living in Culture: 25 Years of Periférica Internacional,” by journalist María Ángeles Robles, which offers a comprehensive journey through the last quarter-century of cultural management in Spain and Latin America. This work is not simply a nostalgic retrospective, but a veritable “mine of knowledge” that documents the resilience and commitment to critical thinking of a project born on the periphery to become central. Robles reconstructs the magazine’s trajectory through dialogue with its key figures. By rescuing twenty-five years of history, the book becomes a powerful declaration of intent regarding the need to maintain safe havens for thoughtful reflection and the transfer of knowledge in an increasingly volatile world in need of collective hope.
