The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has recently announced an expansion of its Creative Cities list with 66 new joiners. Last Wednesday, Director-General Audrey Azoulay shared the list of the newest entries that of course includes several EU cities as well.
Here are the 17 newly admitted members, located in an EU-member state and the respective category they have been recognized in:
- Angoulême (France) – Literature
- Bergamo (Italy) – Gastronomy
- Biella (Italy) – Crafts and Folk Art
- Caldas da Rainha (Portugal) – Crafts and Folk Art
- Exeter (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) – Literature
- Karlsruhe (Germany) – Media Arts
- Kuhmo (Finland) – Literature
- Leeuwarden (Netherlands) – Literature
- Leiria (Portugal) – Music
- Lliria (Spain) – Music
- Metz (France) – Music
- Potsdam (Germany) – Film
- Valladolid (Spain) – Film
- Veszprém (Hungary) – Music
- Viborg (Denmark) – Media Arts
- Viljandi (Estonia) – Crafts and Folk Art
- Wrocław (Poland) – Literature
Cities as drivers of sustainable development through innovation
Cities are perceived as laboratories of ideas and innovative practices. Accordingly, the Creative Cities Network of UNESCO rewards those that “bring a tangible contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through innovative thinking and action” This commitment leads the sustainable development actions with a direct benefit to urban communities.
On this occasion, Azoulay said: “All over the world, these cities, each in its way, make culture the pillar, not an accessory, of their strategy. This favours political and social innovation and is particularly important for the young generations.”
With the latest inclusion, the expanding network of creative cities has reached the number of 246. It is interesting to know how diverse the members are – coming from all continents and income levels. The differences, however, do not prevent them from sharing and working towards a common goal – to place creativity and the creative economy at the heart of their urban development plans and make cities safe, resilient, inclusive and sustainable, thereby contributing to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
