European Heritage Awards laureates present their achievements at the Excellence Fair
The laureates of the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards 2018 presented their outstanding achievements at the Excellence Fair on 21 June at the Allianz Forum, Berlin. Approximately 400 people, including professionals and volunteers in the field of culture and heritage, attended the event, which was among the highlights of the European Cultural Heritage Summit.
Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, Secretary-General of Europa Nostra, Michel Magnier, Director for Culture and Creativity at the European Commission, and Koen van Balen, Chair of the Jury Conservation 2018, each welcomed the audience.
The 29 winners of the EU Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards, who came from 17 countries participating in the EU’s Creative Europe programme, as well as the winner of the Europa Nostra Award from a European country not taking part in that programme, namely Turkey, presented and discussed their exemplary accomplishments. Based on the aims and methods used by each project, the presentations were divided into sessions which focused on the 10 initiatives of the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018, the four objectives of which are “engagement”, “sustainability”, “protection” and “innovation”.
The sessions were opened and moderated by representatives from the European Commission, namely: Erminia Sciacchitano, Chief Scientific Advisor of the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018, Directorate-General for Education and Culture; Zoltán Krasznai, Policy Officer, Directorate-General for Research & Innovation; Silvio Gonzato, Director for Strategic Communications, Parliamentary Affairs and Legal Affairs, European External Action Service (EEAS); and Dorota Nigge, Team Leader, European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018, Directorate-General for Education and Culture.
At the end of each session, the audience had the opportunity to ask questions and the speakers took the opportunity to together discuss how these themes relate to their projects. Further networking was possible during the lunch break and the networking session at the end of the day, where participants had the opportunity to connect with the laureates and get to know the projects better.
The concluding session brought together key stakeholders in the field of European cultural heritage, including Suay Aksoy, President of the International Council of Museums, Mircea Diaconu, MEP and Vice Chair of the European Parliament Committee on Education and Culture, Paolo Fontani, Director of Liaison Office in Brussels and Representative to the European Institutions at UNESCO, Thorsten Ludwig, Managing Director of Interpret Europe – European Association for Heritage Interpretation, Catherine Magnant, Head of the Task Force for the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018, European Commission; and Babette Winter, State Secretary for Europe and Culture in the Thuringia State Chancellery, Member of the European Committee of Regions and Rapporteur general. This session was moderated by Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, who encouraged these stakeholders to reflect on the day’s presentations and themes.
A video message from Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation was sent in advance of the event and was played for the audience. In it, Commissioner Moedas highlighted how cultural heritage contributes to our economy and may be a key resource in finding solutions for the future, for example, in combating drought brought about by climate change.
