European Youth Capital
Turin (2010)
Antwerp (2011)
Braga (2012)
Maribor (2013)
Thessaloniki (2014)
Cluj-Napoca (2015)
Ganja (2016)The European Youth Capital (abbreviated EYC) is the title awarded to a European city for the period of one year, during which it is given the chance to showcase, through a multi-faceted programme, its youth-related cultural, social, political and economic life and development.[1] The European Youth Capital is an initiative by the European Youth Forum, and the first capital was chosen in 2009. The current, capital for the 2016 calendar year is Ganja, Azerbaijan.
Goals
The European Youth Capital aims in promoting intra-European co-operation between young people. Among the most important aspects of the institution is the betterment of everyday life of the youth in the city selected as youth capital, not just for the duration of the festivities, but in the long term.[2] Additionally, participation of the youth in the design and implementation of the plans for each capital of youth is encouraged by the EYC.[2] Ensuring that the youth are informed and actively involved in society and given opportunities for a better future is also a priority for the EYC initiative.[1] Tourism and increased international prestige are some of the additional benefits of being named European Youth Capital.[1]
Capitals 2009–2018
Since 2009, there have been seven European Youth Capitals, and the selections for 2016, 2017 and 2018 have been announced:[3] [4][5]
| Year | City | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Rotterdam |  Netherlands |
|
| 2010 | Turin | Italy |
|
| 2011 | Antwerp | Belgium |
|
| 2012 | Braga | Portugal |
Info |
| 2013 | Maribor | Slovenia |
Info |
| 2014 | Thessaloniki | Greece |
Info |
| 2015 | Cluj-Napoca | Romania |
Info
other candidates: |
| 2016 | Ganja | Azerbaijan |
other candidates:  Varna,  Vilnius,  La Laguna and Badajoz
|
| 2017 | Varna | Bulgaria |
other candidates: Cascais,  Galway,  Newcastle and Perugia[6]
|
| 2018 | Cascais | Portugal |
other candidates:  Kecskemét, Manchester,  Novi Sad and Perugia
|
See also
References
- ^ a b c "ABOUT THE EYC". www.youthforum.org/CAPITAL. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
- ^ a b "General Information". www.youthforum.org/CAPITAL. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
- ^ "EYCs of the Past, Present and Future". www.youthforum.org/CAPITAL. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
- ^ http://www.europeanyouthcapital.org/yfj/varna-bulgaria-awarded-european-youth-capital-2017/ Varna (Bulgaria) awarded European Youth Capital 2017, 20 November, 2014
- ^ "And the winner is: Cascais, EYC 2018!". europeanyouthcapital.org. 3 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
- ^ "Five cities short-listed to become the European Youth Capital 2017". www.youthforum.org. Retrieved 17 October 2014.