This book explores how federalism — a unique, social, and political reality that influences policy development and implementation — contributes to shaping cultural policies in a variety of federations. Building on the cases of a wide variety of countries, including Argentina, India and Australia, this book presents the typical and distinctive institutional challenges that federalism brings to cultural policy. In particular, this book emphasizes four dimensions: the institutional and constitutional division of cultural powers; the governmental structures of cultural policy and the dynamics of cooperation and competition established between subnational and federal powers; local cultural policies, capital cities, and the place of municipal government; and the development of subnational cultural relations. Finally, this book also acknowledges the diversity of federations and federalisms and provides a portrait of different types of relationships between federal institutions and the cultural sphere.