For at least forty years, a dilemma has been hanging over the community of cultural and creative practitioners: on the one hand, public recognition of the intrinsic value of their activities seems to be declining by the day; on the other hand, consensus, support and resources increasingly depend on their ability to document - possibly through figures - the instrumental value of those activities. In fact, a wide range of desirable social and economic impacts are attributed to them. The dilemma has often produced regrettable outcomes. But that is not to say that artistic and cultural actions, programmes and activities are not worthy of being valued and appreciated for the positive changes they make possible. That is the point of this book: why it is important to talk about the impacts of culture and how to detect and account for them with appropriate perspectives, responding to the need for simple and manageable answers, but without mortifying the depth and complexity of the factors at play.