Belgium will host Europe’s biggest sportainment park
The facility will be located in Hasselt and is set to welcome its first visitors this spring
16 cities from 10 countries have made it to the semi-final stage
On 2 September, the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency revealed that 16 cities have reached the semi-final stage of the European Capital of Innovation Awards (iCapital) 2021. This year, cities from across the EU and Horizon Europe Associated Countries have had the chance to apply for awards from two distinct categories: The European Capital of Innovation and The European Rising Innovative City.
While the European Capital of Innovation category is well-known, it is the first time that cities have had the chance to apply for The European Rising Innovative City award. The new category targets towns and cities that have a population of 50,000-249,9999 inhabitants. Both prizes are used to recognise and award cities for their most innovative practices.
European cities had the opportunity to submit applications from 18 March until 15 July. During this period, the call for applications received submissions from 39 applicants. Out of these 39, 16 cities from 10 countries have made it to the semi-final stage of the seventh iCapital edition. The jury has selected the following semi-finalists:
The European Capital of Innovation category:
The European Rising Innovative City category:
In October, each of the 16 semi-finalists will have to attend a private hearing with jury members. There, they will present their submitted applications and answer questions. Following this, the jury will select 3 finalists in both categories. These finalists (1 winner and 2 runners-up) will be revealed at the European Innovation Council Summit on 24-25 November.
The winner of the European Capital of Innovation category will receive a monetary prize of EUR 1 million, with the two runners-up being awarded EUR 100,000 each. Similarly, the first-ever winner of the European Rising Innovative City category will receive EUR 500,000, with the two runner-up cities receiving EUR 50,000 each.
The winners of the six previous iCapital editions are Barcelona (2014), Amsterdam (2016), Paris (2017), Athens (2018), Nantes (2019), and Leuven (2020).
Citing concerns about humaneness, the legislation aims to discourage the proliferation of the so-called designer pet breeds
Naturally, many aren’t happy - not because of the reduced possibility for prayers, but because they felt it was an attack on welfare
The facility will be located in Hasselt and is set to welcome its first visitors this spring
Some autonomous shuttles in France are now doing their rounds without a human supervisor inside
Europe is striving to cut the costs of operating wind turbines on water
38,000 of these fellas help to purify the city air, so why not become friends with them?
2020 and 2021 were zero years for these types of events, but the break has not diminished its reputation
As Europe strives to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, Turku and Dijon are among a group of cities seeking to reach this goal two decades earlier
Some autonomous shuttles in France are now doing their rounds without a human supervisor inside
2020 and 2021 were zero years for these types of events, but the break has not diminished its reputation
Citing concerns about humaneness, the legislation aims to discourage the proliferation of the so-called designer pet breeds
The facility will be located in Hasselt and is set to welcome its first visitors this spring
The European Commission has published its first progress report charting the achievements of the socio-cultural movement that combines beauty, inclusion and sustainability
The 2023 edition of the creative initiative promises to be bigger, bolder and more inclusive
This initiative seeks to integrate the values of the New European Bauhaus into the European Commission’s 100 Cities Mission
Veni Markovski’s take on dealing with disinformation in the European Union's poorest country – Bulgaria
A conversation with the mayor of Utrecht on the occasion of her mission to COP27
A conversation with the President of the European Committee of the Regions, about energy, climate change and the underrated importance of cohesion policy