12 August Edinburgh: A major new poll of 35,000 people across 34 countries, commissioned to coincide with the inaugural Global Ideas Stage at the 2026 Edinburgh International Festival, 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, the International Festival's new flagship event held in collaboration with Panmure House, the last home of Scottish economist and philosopher Adam Smith. Seeking to demonstrate why the arts matter in today’s world, it 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.
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.
Nicola Benedetti, Edinburgh International Festival Director, said:
This timely polling is itself inspiring and affirming of the work we do. It shows the essential importance of arts and culture to our shared human condition, to our innate optimism, and to the practice of resilience.
“This poll should galvanise politicians and policy makers to recognise, commit to, and invest in culture to improve the lives of global citizens.
Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, said:
When things seem most difficult and uncertain, what gives us hope?
“What this vital poll shows is that art, music and literature are essential to give us hope about the future, because they inspire us to actually do the things that perhaps we feel we would not be capable of, and – because they are shared in common – they inspire us to come together. They offer the players and the stages, the architecture and history that will lay the foundations and signpost the way to the more hopeful future we so desperately need.
Director of Panmure House and Adam Smith Chair, Adam Dixon, said:
This poll clearly shows that people are looking to the arts not only for inspiration, but for hope.
“At a time of profound global change, there could be no better moment for Panmure House and the Edinburgh International Festival to come together and create a platform for meaningful dialogue and fresh perspectives.
“Drawing on Edinburgh's rich tradition of debate and discovery, we're proud to help bring leading thinkers, artists and audiences together to explore the defining questions of our time."
Tickets to all performances in the 2026 Edinburgh International Festival are available at www.eif.co.uk.
