The EU adjudication panel is in Malta today and tomorrow giving its verdict on the final application of Valletta as European Capital of Culture (ECoC), 2018. The preliminary bid – which covers all Malta and Gozo not solely the capital – was lodged a year ago; this visit is the follow up. All being well, the panel’s press conference tomorrow afternoon (12/10) will announce the award of the title. No longer will we be talking about ‘bids’ and ‘candidacy’ but about hosting one of the most effective, legacy-building and distinct ECoC years Europe has seen.
So, while the panel mulls over and questions Valletta’s bid document and grills the local fonctionnaires, let’s do some navel gazing in anticipation of the outcome. This video (of vox pops) released by the Valletta 2018 Foundation, the entity driving the bid and the next steps all the way to the ECoC year itself, gives an insight into what citizens and tourists like about Malta and what they’d like to see change. Presumably changes they feel a V.18 might spur on. Nothing too earth-shattering yet in their comments, but worth taking note of. Start small now, but think big en route to V.18. If the bid succeeds, there’ll be fewer words and whole lot more action needed anyway in the next five years to realise our ECoC.
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The ‘Voice your Message’ vox pop stand is travelling around the Islands. Find out more about it here.
Fantastic! It will be beneficial in so many ways for the islands – well done.
We’re hoping to join the Malta community by March ’13 (at last)
Patricia,
All went well on 12th and the bid was successful so it’s now V.18, ECoC, without the prefix ‘candidate’!
Fingers crossed that the bid is successful!