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1. New technologies in support of creativity and innovation

2. Facilitating access to culture through new technologies

New technologies in support of creativity and innovation

The Croatian Academic and Research Network (CARNET) is a public institution operating within the Ministry of Science and Education in the field of information and communication technology and its application in education. CARNET began operating in 1991 as a project of the then Ministry of Science and Technology and became the first and only provider of Internet services in Croatia. Four years later, the Government of the Republic of Croatia adopted the Decree on the Establishment of the CARNET with the aim of innovating the education system and encouraging the progress of individuals and the society as a whole through information and communication technology (ICT).

The CARNET implements the e-Schoolsproject. The project was first launched in 2015 by CARNET with the goal of increasing the level of digital maturity for 10 percent of primary and secondary schools in Croatia. In digitally mature schools, teachers use technology to improve teaching, develop their own digital content and, support independent learning, focusing on fostering critical skills in students, who are central to the teaching process. Students actively participate in teaching with increased motivation to learn and persue their education, thereby enhancing their competitiveness in the labour market. The management of e-Schools is efficient and transparent, facilitating simplified communication and the exchange of e-documents among the school, its stakeholders, and founders. In the second phase of the programme, by the end of 2022, all schools will be equipped with wireless local area networks and the corresponding active network equipment. The e-Schools project won the European Commission’s RegioStars Award as an European Union-funded project in the field of regional development.

The policy for making new technologies readily available to empower young people's creativity and capacity for innovation is described in Chapter 8.6, Developing Entrepreneurial Skills Through Culture.

Facilitating access to culture through new technologies

The Ministry of Culture and Media (MCM) is a top-level authority for media and media policies. It emphasises media literacy (also see in Chapter 6.8, Media literacy and safe use of new media).

The MCM has several initiatives dedicated to developing and making online repositories of cultural content accessible:

• the E-culture – Cultural Heritage Digitalisation project aims to enhance access to cultural heritage and protect it through digital storage
• Cultural Content Online initiative aims to ensure the accessibility and diversity of cultural content that cannot be presented to the public in the near future. All recorded or live-broadcasted activities can be followed in one central location.
• In the Service of Heritage Visualisation serves as a platform for the interested public to access the work of prominent professional photographers from the national conservation service in the second half of the 20th century.

These initiatives do not specifically target the youth.

It should be noted that the MCM is the competent body for media and media policies,  responsible for regulating the media sector and developing programmes dedicated to the media. The MCM implemented a support programme for non-profit media from 2012 to 2015. Under this programme, start-ups have received funding, and/or project proposals aimed at launching new media have been supported. The programme was abolished in early 2016, and to date, no substitute programme has been introduced to support either non-profit or any other media. Furthermore, the MCM, within the framework of the Public Needs in Culture in the Republic of Croatia, supports cultural media under the Books and Publishing Support framework. Support for this programme is provided for specialised journals and publications in culture, as well as electronic publications dedicated to culture and art. As part of the programme, youth and for-youth media were not prioritised in any way. These are all programmes dedicated to the media within the MCM, whereas other bodies responsible for youth do not have specific programmes or project lines to support media and media projects, and the creative use of new technologies.

Thus, there is no official document or programme at the national level, encouraging the creative use of new technologies. The empowerment and development of technological competences are incorporated into the media literacy programme, an integral part of implementing citizenship education. This programme is conducted within informal education or as optional classes in primary and secondary schools.