Mega-events have been changing their relationship with the city, now more commonly using existing infrastructures and facilities. In Europe, this may put historic city centers and their heritage at risk. By the same token, the presence of mega-events can become an opportunity for valorizing heritage and for city development, as has been seen in the five cases studied in the HOMEE Research Project. The event brings together international experts and policy makers together to explore these controversial issues through cultural mega-events. In particular, issues of governance, planning, urban effects and long-term legacy will be addressed. This event will be a launchpad for the works on a charter regarding mega-events in heritage-rich cities.
April 3, 2020
Due to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions in Europe, the event planned to be held in Pafos is postponed; there will be an online workshop, by invitation only.
Keynote speech:
“Mega-events in Heritage-rich Cities: A Challenge for Europe” by Sneska Quaedvlieg-Mihailovic, Secretary General of Europa Nostra
Mega-events have long been synonymous with the creation of mass investments in iconic venues, new infrastructures and large development schemes. Yet many cities have come to question this model, either by rejecting mega-events altogether or instead seeking smaller, less expensive and more sustainable models. The last several bidding cycles for the Olympic Games in particular have seen many candidate cities abruptly cancel their bids, leading to the unprecedented move of both the 2024 and 2028 Games being awarded simultaneously. In particular, the plans for the upcoming Paris 2024 and Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Games clearly demonstrates a change in thinking and approach to hosting mega-events as both events will largely utilize existing venues while also involving heritage sites in varying ways. At the same time, cultural mega-events, like the European Capital of Culture program, have become increasingly popular in recent years. Though comparatively smaller in size and budget, such events also have come to have an important impact on the infrastructure, urban fabric and promoted image and development of these cities.
In this context, the ”Mega-events and the City” series draws on multiple kinds of mega-events, their similarities and differences to pinpoint which lessons and learning can be translated among different experiences and how the plans for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics as well as others may benefit from the past cases. The seminars will be clustered to investigate 3 specific perspectives: – Urban governance and legacy – Cultural heritage and landscape – Urban regions and networks
The video of each seminar will be posted online the day prior on this webpage, with a live online discussion taking place at 17.00 Please request access to the online discussion by sending an email to: zachary.jones@polimi.it; nicole.detogni@polimi.it
n the past, many cities used mega-events as a strategy to boost development. The creation of new facilities and infrastructures for mega-events typically targeted areas of expansion outside of historic city fabric. Today, on the contrary, mega-event organizers are increasingly opting more for the re-use of existing facilities and areas. This paradigm shift represents both a potential opportunity and threat for heritage-rich cities in Europe. This book explores the relationships between the planning and implementation of mega-events and cultural heritage through the in-depth study of five cases: Genoa 2004 European Capital of Culture, Milan Expo 2015, Wrocław 2016 European Capital of Culture, Hull 2017 UK City of Culture, Pafos 2017 European Capital of Culture. The book draws on these case studies in order to spark further research and policy debate regarding the emerging opportunities and threats for context-specific policies and projects, for long-term urban development, for cooperation among actors and capacity building at different levels, for the multiple social and cultural identities that help heritage and cities to flourish
This publication includes the National Case Studies Reports and it corresponds to one key output of WP1 (activity A1.4 in particular) in the JPICH financed project “HOMEE – Heritage Opportunities/threats within Mega-Events in Europe”.
Ponzini D., Bianchini F., Georgi-Tzortzi J.N., Sanetra-Szeliga J. (Eds. 2020). Mega-events and Heritage: The Experience of Five European Cities. Krakow: International Cultural Centre.
Edited by Davide Ponzini, Franco Bianchini, Julia Georgi-Nerantzia Tzortzi and Joanna Sanetra-Szeliga
A roundtable with Polish policymakers and scholars discussed the issues of mega-events and their consequences for cities rich in cultural heritage resources.
On June 24-26, 2019 the workshops part of the Living Lab took place in Matera. The four teams of the HOMEE project in collaboration with the Associate Partners University of Balisicata at Matera and the Institute for Heritage Conservation and Restoraion (MiBACT) interacted with local stake holders and decision makers of the Matera Basilicata 2019 European Capital of Culture Program.
