Ahead of the launch of the European Year of Cultural Heritage in 2018 at the European Culture Forum in Milan, nine sites celebrating or symbolising the fight for European ideals, values, history and integration have been selected to receive the European Heritage Label:
Leipzig’s Musical Heritage Sites (Germany); the Dohány Street Synagogue Complex (Hungary); Fort Cadine (Italy); Javorca Church (Slovenia); the former Natzweiler concentration camp and its satellite camps (France and Germany); the Sighet Memorial (Romania); the Bois du Cazier (Belgium); the Village of Schengen (Luxembourg) and the Maastricht Treaty (The Netherlands).
Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, Tibor Navracsics, said: “The European Union is built on the values of peace, freedom, tolerance and solidarity. These values must not be taken for granted; we have to work for them every day. All the sites on the European Heritage Label list promote these values and remind us of all those who fought to establish and preserve them. I look forward to celebrating the nine sites that will be added to the list during the European Year of Cultural Heritage in 2018.”
An independent panel set up by the Commission selected the new sites from 25 candidates preselected by participating Member States. This brings to 38 the number of sites which have been chosen to receive the Label. The Commission will formally designate the sites in February 2018, and an award ceremony will be held in March 2018.
