Recognised as Key Competence for Lifelong Learning (KC8) since 2006, Cultural Awareness and Expression (CAE) remains largely invisible in practice. Decision-makers and educators still lack adequate resources to effectively develop and monitor this competence, which is particularly critical in an era marked by exponential polarisation, declining trust in institutions and growing challenges to information reliability. This brief exposes systemic gaps and calls for a critical integration of the arts into the heart of a resilient European society: our Education.