Frequently Asked Questions

What is a European Capital of Culture (ECoC)?

It is the largest cultural event in Europe. For a year, a city and the surrounding region are the stage of an intense cultural and artistic program that involves the local and regional community. 

What are the main goals of an ECoC?

The main goals of an ECoC are to promote European values and face culture as a transforming element of a city and of the surrounding region, stimulating new social and economic dynamics based on arts, knowledge, innovation and creativity. 

How and when did the ECoC program start?

This European Commission project, which was called “European City of Culture”, started in Athens in 1985 as an intergovernmental initiative, and was an idea of the Greek Minister of Culture, Melina Mercouri. 

How does a city become an ECoC?

Every year, two cities from two European countries receive the title, awarded four years earlier, after a complex selection process conducted by an international jury, composed of specialists appointed by different European institutions.


Why is Ponta Delgada applying for European Capital of Culture 2027?


Because it has a unique cultural identity, between tradition and experimentation, and it is an opportunity to rethink and revitalize the cultural places of the city and the region, and to strengthen the cultural and creative industries of its territory. 

Why is the project called Ponta Delgada - Azores 2027?

Ponta Delgada - Azores 2027 reflects the will of involving the entire region in the application project and to strengthen cultural cooperation between the nine islands, in a participatory process, involving the entire Azorean community.

What impact will Ponta Delgada - Azores 2027 have in the long-term region's cultural sector?

Alongside the candidacy to European Capital of Culture, the Ponta Delgada Municipality has developed the Ponta Delgada Cultural Strategy 2030. A community that is a transantlantic Archipelago, structured in Ponta Delgada and on the island, stands before the region, the country, the European Union, the diaspora and the world, as an important support tool for the implementation of a strategy that should adapt, depending on the different cicles and contexts. The document is in line with the strategic orientations of the region for the sector, and proposes network dynamics with other municipalities of the Azores.

In which phase of the process are we?

We are in the final selection phase: A jury will assess the final version of the bid book of the four pre-selected cities, and will indicate which one will become European Capital of Culture in 2027. The bid book must be submitted until the 21st of october.
After that, members of the international jury will visit the island, in november, and there will be a presentation, in december, in Lisbon.

When is the final result known?

The final decision will be anounced on the first week of december 2022. First, the jury must visit que four final cities (Ponta Delgada, Aveiro, Braga e Évora) and judge a presentation that will take place in Lisbon.

What happens if Ponta Delgada is selected European Capital of Culture in 2027?


If Ponta Delgada becomes a ECoC in 2027, we will develop a continuous work of implementation of what figures in the bidbook, as well as the expansion of the programming, european dimension and outreach.

What happens if Ponta Delgada isn't chosen?

The team will be working, until march of 2023, to guarantee the legacy of the developed projects and the partnerships that were established throughout the candidacy.

What will the team be working on during 2022?

In 2022, the team will listen, gather ideas, projects and will provide tools of cultural capacitation. We are implementing strategic pilot-projects, through open calls, together with the agents and local institutions, as a way of involving the creative and cultural sector and civic society. This work will help in the writing and ideation of the bidbook. For as long as Ponta Delgada is a candidate city, it is not the team's role to programme and/or co-produce and finance individual projects. Our conversations with artists and cultural agents are always aimed at imagining the year of 2027 (thinking about the journey to get there, but also the idea of legacy), through projects that reflect the ideias of the candidacy and predict a European dimension of cooperation and the participation of a wide array of communities.