Towards a development policy based on local genius

Mireille Lacombe, the daughter of a local representative and a trained economist, entered politics and local development at a very early age. She created a number of festivals : the Rencontres cinéma et monde rural (encounters between the cinema and the rural world) in 1979 in the Cantal département ; and the Festival international de théâtre de rue (International festival of street theatre) in Aurillac in 1984. As an elected representative on the Auvergne regional council, she was opposed to the view of local development held by its President, Giscard d’Estaing, despite being convinced of the importance of the Vulcania project which aimed to introduce the Auvergne region and its volcanoes to a wider audience. She explains her vision of local development and the position of cultural events in this context. Cultural events can only have a significant influence if they are accompanied by a strong political project on a local scale.