News

Our bid book is now available

Our selection phase bid book is now available here, on our website. Throughout 100 pages, the bid book shows a collective dream that arose from the will of a civic movement of around 800 people. It details Ponta Delgada's intention of involving the Azorean archipelago in the European Capital of Culture. Besides the artistic programme, it is revealed how this event complements the Cultural Strategy of the municipality for the next decade. This is a technical document that responds to six evaluation criteria: monitoring, cultural and artistic content, European dimension, outreach, management and capacity to deliver.
Human Nature is the concept behind this candidacy for European Capital of Culture. Human means Culture, whilst Nature means Place. The culture of this place is made by the relationships between Nature and Culture, Geography and History, the vibrant landscape, the cultural proximity to the Americas, the richness of our traditions and our ability to remain open to the world as an authentic living laboratory of experimentation and innovation.
The project we have presented had several levels: from the city to the island, from the island to the archipelago, from the archipelago to the world.
We have created a multi-island cultural programme, where people will be the protagonists, and Nature will be our stage and place of reflection. We are going to develop new audiences, occupy the digital space, make room for new voices and new places. We call for participation, co-creation, communication and collaboration and we will take the territory as a playground, an academy and a stage. It is through Culture that we are going to rethink the world we want to live in, recover our sense of humanity and transform the Azores into an Archipelago of People.
You can now consult the official version of the bid book, in English. Soon, we will share the Portuguese version.