Communities at the forefront of the European Heritage Days events
From the Ministry of the Environment and the Finnish Local Heritage Federation
The European Heritage Days will be held this year with the theme Community places, shared environments, which will put communities at the forefront. The theme year was launched today at an opening event held at the Ministry of the Environment. European Heritage Days are an annual Europe-wide event, bringing people together to celebrate their own cultural environment and heritage.
“We all belong to a number of different communities. We meet one another in places which have become familiar and important to us. We use, maintain, restore and develop these environments which hold importance for us. I hope that this theme year will encourage communities to nurture places which are important to them”, Minister of Agriculture and the Environment Kimmo Tiilikainen stated in his opening speech.
“Everyone is welcome to organise different kinds of events for the European Heritage Days in September, and to act for our shared environment”, encouraged Minister Tiilikainen.
Competition to encourage children and young people to explore their immediate surroundings
The aim of the Cultural Heritage-makers competition – which is being organised as part of the European Heritage Days – is to motivate children and young people to take an active role in their cultural environment now and in the future. The competition encourages children and young people to observe, explore and analyse their immediate surroundings. The theme of the Cultural Heritage-makers competition for 2016 is Our Place. The competition opens on 17 February 2016 and closes on 14 October 2016.
Communities at the forefront of September’s events
In Finland, the European Heritage Days events are centred around the second weekend of September, 9–11 September 2016, during which time local operators will be organising open doors days, guided tours and other events. Anyone who is interested can organise an event, from museums, schools and agencies to associations and individuals.
As many as 30 million people will be taking part in tens of thousands of events across Europe. In Finland too, the events are set to draw in thousands of participants. These events will gain Europe-wide visibility.
In Finland the project is being managed by the Ministry of the Environment and coordinated by the Finnish Local Heritage Federation. The National Board of Antiquities, the Finnish National Board of Education and the Association of Cultural Heritage Education in Finland will also be involved.
- European Heritage Days (rakennusperinto.fi, in Finnish)
- Cultural Heritage-makers competition (rakennusperinto.fi, in Finnish)
- On social media #kulttuuriympäristöpäivät
More information
Executive Director Riitta Vanhatalo, the Finnish Local Heritage Federation, tel. +358 (0)40 733 7033
Planning Officer Hanna Hämäläinen, Ministry of the Environment, tel. +358 (0)295 250 095, [email protected]