Bourges, European Capital of Culture in 2028
After Paris, Avignon, Lille and Marseille-Provence, Bourges is the fifth French city that becomes European Capital of Culture in 2028 alongside České Budějovice in the Czech Republic and Skopje in North Macedonia.
What is a European Capital of Culture?
The term of European Capital of Culture is awarded for a period of one year to a city that implements a cultural program with a strong European dimension intended to promote the diversity of the cultures of the continent but also the elements and values that unite us.
The title of European Capital of Culture is awarded following a rigorous selection that is open to cities in the 27 Member States of the European Union as well as to candidate countries (or potential candidates) at entry and to those who have signed the Agreement on the European Economic Area, namely Norway, Liechtenstein or Iceland.
Theorder of countries for the period 2020-2033 has already been voted by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.
The "European Capital of Culture" initiative was launched in 1985 on the initiative of the Greek and French Ministers of Culture, Mélina Mercoury and Jack Lang to promote the diversity of cultures in Europe and place culture at the heart of a city’s long-term development.
Who chooses the future European Capital of Culture?
If the European Capital of Culture is an initiative of the European Union implemented by the European Commission, the national designation is organized by the Member States, most often through the Ministry of Culture of the country concerned. Six years before the year in which the cities compete, the Ministry is responsible for publishing a call containing the selection criteria and the procedures for the pre-selection and selection procedure (these criteria and procedures are identical for all Member States). It accompanies the independent jury in charge of the final selection process.
For the selection of the French city 2028, the independent jury was composed of twelve people. Ten members have been appointed by different European Union (EU) institutions: three by the EU Council, three by the European Parliament, three by the European Commission and one by the European Committee of the Regions. These 10 members are appointed for a period of 3 years and participate during this period, in selections in several countries. Two French members completed this jury appointed by the Ministry of Culture.
What were the criteria to designate the French city, European Capital of Culture 2028?
Nine French cities submitted applications in January 2023: Amiens, Bastia, Bourges, Clermont-Ferrand, Montpellier, Nice, Reims, Rouen and Saint-Denis. The jury auditioned them in March 2023 to preselect four (Bourges, Clermont-Ferrand, Montpellier, Rouen) with recommendations on the content of their applications.
Six criteria came into play in obtaining the final title of Capital. The first took into account the link between the project and the general development of the city in order to develop long-term connections between culture and sectors such as the economy, tourism, education, the fight against inequalities.
European dimensions (with projects that show the diversity and commonalities of cultures in Europe and translate into partnerships between actors from several countries), participatory (with an ambition to raise awareness of all audiences), budgetary (with a solid financial base), political (with strong and broad support expected from the public authorities concerned) and logistical (having sufficient capacity in terms of cultural infrastructure or accommodation) were the other criteria.
Bourges, future European Capital of Culture 2028
On 13 December 2023, after this long selection process and after intense deliberations, Bourges was designated as the new French city, European Capital of Culture 2028.
Cultural programming is already being prepared.
See you in 2028 in Bourges!
Detailed steps in the selection process:
- December 2021: publication of the decree and notice of competition and opening of thecall for applications,
- 6 October 2022: technical information meeting on the pre-selection and selection process of candidate cities, organised by the Ministry of Culture in Paris;
- 2 January 2023, 17.00 (Paris time): deadline for submission of applications by the cities;
- 7 February 2023: Publication in the Official Journal of the Republic of the decree appointment of the 12 members of the European jury independent of the competition;
- 7 February to 2 March: hearings of the candidate cities before the independent European jury;
- March 3, 2023: announcement of the shortlisted cities by the independent jury and publication of its report;
- 19 April 2023: publication of theorder the Official Journal setting out the short list of cities selected to participate in the final phase of selecting a “European Capital of Culture” for 2028;
- week of 4 December 2023: jury visit to Bourges, Clermont-Ferrand, Montpellier and Rouen;
- week of 11 December 2023: meeting of the European jury and announcement of the French city designated European Capital of Culture 2028.
- December 13, 2023: Bourges is designated French City, European Capital of Culture 2028. Discover the jury’s final report, either in French or in English.
On the website All of Europe, a computer graphics summarizing the current selection process
On the website of the European institutions the page dedicated to European Capital of Culture. This page will tell you which other cities will be European Capitals of Culture at the same time as France. For the Czech Republic, the shortlisted cities in early 2023 are: Broumov and České Budějovice.
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