EU best practice capitals 2020

One of the things that really impresses me about the European Union is its programs to promote best practice, culture, etc.

Capital of Culture program.  One of the earliest programs, designed to promote both individual countries as well as the idea of the European Union is the Capital of Culture program.

Originally, one city was designated.  Now, each year there are two capitals.  Countries in the EU sphere but not actual EU members are occasionally part of the program, such as Norway and Turkey.

There is a rolling schedule where countries are designated to participate and then within the designee there is a process and competition for final selection.  The UK went on to create their own version of the program, "City of Culture", which runs on a four year schedule.

This year, the cities are Rijeka (Croatia) and Galway (Ireland).

-- European Capital of Culture 2020 - City of Rijeka
-- Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture

The overarching program has commissioned a number of studies evaluating the program.   More recently, cities have begun commissioning research programs associated with their hosting of the event, such as the five-year Impacts08 study for Liverpool, which was commissioned at the outset of the city’s winning the hosting slot for 2008, and/or local academic institutions have engaged in separate research programs for more focused study on the impact of this event in their community on their own and through the specially created University Network of the European Capitals of Culture.

Such studies complement the incredibly rich academic literature generated on the program (and the various regeneration projects in the cities studied in this series).  In addition to a wide variety of one-off articles, special issues of journals such as International Journal of Culture Policy (2004), Local Economy (2004), Urban Studies Journal (2005), and the Nordic Journal of Cultural Policy (2010) have addressed the program both generally and specifically with evaluations and explorations of the various program years and successes and failures.

Extension of the concept: the Green Capital.  In 2008, the EU created the Green Capital program, to call attention to best urban environmental practices.  The first city designated, Stockholm, inaugurated the program in 2010.

The 2020 designee is Lisbon.

-- Lisbon Green Capital 2020

Youth Capital Program. Modeled also after the Culture Capital, the European Youth Forum created the European Youth Capital program, making in 2009 Rotterdam the first capital chosen.

-- European Youth Capital: 10 Years of boosting vibrant, youthful cities 

In 2014, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe became an official endorsing partner.

-- The 2020 Youth Capital is Amiens, France
-- Program brief in English