European Capital of Culture 2012

Together with Portugal, Slovenia is invited to organize the programme of European Capital of Culture in the year 2012. Regarding the fact that we will be collaborating with the country with which we presided over the European Union (EU) in the year 2008, it is very important to start knitting the threads of culture.

The Municipality of Maribor has decided to submit a bid for the public tender issued by the Ministry of Culture on 14 July 2006, closing on 28 February 2007, for selection of a city to be proposed to the EU by the Republic of Slovenia for the European Capital of Culture 2012 nomination. The tender was open to all Slovenian city municipalities. The selected city will co-operate with Guimarães, a historical and industrial Portuguese city which has already been chosen for the ECC programme.

The municipalities of Maribor, Murska Sobota, Novo mesto, Ptuj, Slovenj Gradec and Velenje have agreed that in compliance with the requirements of the public tender, the main tenderer and project leader of the ECC 2012 will be the Municipality of Maribor, whereas other partner municipalities will take part in preparation and implementation of the programme for certain programme segments for the region covered by the participating municipalities.

Purpose of the project:

-   complex approach (creativity + heritage + education + research + digital literacy + cultural tourism + economy + ecology = pure energy)

-   sustainability of region (new jobs, permanent urban development of cities and countryside, higher economy growth, higher competitive position of the region, creative use of up-to-date information communications technologies, renewal energy sources, and co-natural activity)

-   interregional and polycentric activity (networking inside the region and abroad, crossborder and international)
-   local identity empowering (self-confidence of inhabitants, accessibility of cultural goods for local society, local creators development, cooperation between political players, creation of information society)

-   promotion of European cultural cooperation, international visibility of Maribor and partner cities, provinces of Eastern cohesive region of Slovenia

-   cooperation between nonprofit and economic sector (mixed public-private partnerships, development of public and non-government sector)

-   creation of conditions for production and culture representation (cultural infrastructure, international business and programme cooperation)

-   renovation of cultural and industrial heritage and permanent content guarantee

-   supplementing the existing and construction of new touristic, recreative and traffic infrastructure

-   digitalisation of culture (networks, platforms, and presentation of virtual content)

-   encouragement of intercultural dialogue (ethnical minorities, religion communities, Slovenian cultural space, cross-border cooperation, transeuropean collaboration)

-   creation of deficitary educational programmes and institutions, inclusion of all society groups, especially most vulnerable (elderly, children, youth society, disabled persons, peasants, unemployed people, homeless people)

In november 2005 ACE KIBLA prepared a concept for the European Capital of Culture 2012 as a part of an inititative by Ministry of culture of Republic of Slovenia. The concept was prepared by Peter Tomaž Dobrila in Dejan Pestotnik. Here you can take a look at Kibla's concept for European Capital of Culture 2012.

In november 2006 we prepared a concept for the Minicipality of Maribor for the European Capital of Culture 2012... You can find out more here.

Info:
Peter Tomaž Dobrila
Dejan Pestotnik