68% of people worldwide say culture gives them hope

A major new poll of 35,000 people across 34 countries, has found that more than two-thirds of people worldwide have relied on the arts to keep them hopeful.

The poll, the largest of its kind ever undertaken on this subject, was revealed at the Global Ideas Stage, our new flagship event held in collaboration with Panmure House, the last home of Scottish economist and philosopher Adam Smith.

Curated and hosted by Festival Director Nicola Benedetti, Harvard professor Sarah Lewis and Panmure House Director Adam Dixon, speakers included Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, filmmaker Ken Burns, lawyer and social justice activist Bryan Stevenson and journalist Amy Goodman.

The Findings

Seeking to demonstrate why the arts matter in today’s world, the survey found that 68% of people say an individual cultural moment, whether a live music performance, a book, a work of art, a film, or a piece of theatre, has helped them feel more hopeful in the face of an uncertain future. 

Among people who say a piece of culture ‘definitely’ made them feel more hopeful, 26%, (nearly one in four), say people in their community always pull together in a crisis. That is more than double the rate among people who say culture helped only "a little" (12%), and almost three times the rate among those who say culture did not help at all (9%).

Conducted by Focaldata, the research found that people whose sense of hope is inspired by culture are twice as likely to believe humanity can keep building a better world for the next generation. The same group is also twice as likely to say people in their community will pull together in a crisis.

The Global Ideas Stage

Curated and hosted by Festival Director Nicola Benedetti, Harvard professor Sarah Lewis and Panmure House Director Adam Dixon, the 2026 Global Ideas Stage brought together Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, filmmaker Ken Burns, lawyer and social justice activist Bryan Stevenson and journalist Amy Goodman to offer a bold new form of public discourse.  

Inspired by this year’s Festival theme, All Rise, and the coffeehouse culture of Enlightenment Edinburgh, the Global Ideas Stage was presented for a live audience at the newly refurbished King’s Theatre. 

In a series of intimate dialogues, special performances and an invigorating panel discussion, the speakers reflected on the 250 years since the US Declaration of Independence and the publication of Smith’s ‘The Wealth of Nations’, and considered the interdisciplinary role of arts and culture in shaping society’s moral imagination and future. 

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