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Development

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Bulgaria / Gabrovo / Kardjali / Kozloduy / Sofia / Stara Zagora / Troyan / Development / Green City / Smart City / Social City

Bulgaria has awarded its best mayors for 11th year in a row

Almost 140 000 people have cast their vote in the national contest for Mayor of the Year

Sep 19, 2023 16:15
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Luxembourg / Luxembourg / Development / Mobility

High-speed tram will connect Luxembourg City to French border

The planned public transit service will be completed somewhere in 2035

Sep 14, 2023 13:16

Economy and Finance

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Czechia / Economy and Finance / Green City

Czech brewery makes beer from air moisture

It was meant to bring attention to the need to save precious water resources

Aug 23, 2023 13:42
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Finland / Tampere / Digital transformation / Economy and Finance

AI map shows where Tampere has skill gaps to fill

Unlike ChatGPT, this tool can visualize the data with helpful graphics that show the way to develop education and employment opportunities

Aug 23, 2023 09:22

Politics and Reforms

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Poland / Politics and Reforms

Wielun: First Polish town to demand WW2 reparations from Germany

It was also the first one to be bombed by the Luftwaffe

Aug 31, 2023 17:58
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Netherlands / Green City / Politics and Reforms

EC proposes controversial candidate to fill Timmermans’ climate post

Left-wing MEPs aren’t impressed with Mr Hoekstra’s conservative credentials though

Aug 30, 2023 13:38

Innovation and Research

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Poland / Innovation and Research / Mobility

Polish startup tested the first magnetic rail train in the world

The technology differs from maglev in that it allows the usage of already existing infrastructure, with only slight modifications

Sep 7, 2023 16:06
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Berlin / Gabrovo / Ljubljana / Green City / Innovation and Research

Trash to Treasure: the webinar that showed EU cities a way out of the waste mess

The one-hour event turned into a platform for ideas on the future of waste management

Sep 5, 2023 14:21

Digital transformation

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Belgium / Brussels / Digital transformation / Mobility

Brussels launches one app for all local mobility services

Floya will be one hell of a helpful tool next time you’re in the Belgian capital

Sep 7, 2023 13:16
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Finland / Helsinki / Digital transformation

Helsinki’s airport is the world's first test site for digital passports

For now, the service is only available for flights to the United Kingdom

Sep 4, 2023 16:15

Energy efficiency

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Austria / Vienna / Energy efficiency / Public Spaces

Vienna equips City Hall with solar roof panels

The Austrian capital sets a shining example without compromising historical integrity

Sep 12, 2023 16:27
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Denmark / Copenhagen / Energy efficiency

Seawater cools a third of all Copenhagen's hotel rooms

Given climatic trends, we’ll be hearing more and more about district cooling systems, in line with heating ones

Aug 14, 2023 16:20

Mobility

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Mobility

European cities: EU Cycling Declaration must support cities to expand local cycling

Sep 18, 2023 12:01
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Czechia / Prague / Mobility / Public Spaces

Prague’s historic core bans parking of scooters

Will the Czech capital follow Paris in the anti-two-wheeler crusade?

Sep 15, 2023 18:32

Public Spaces

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Germany / Freiburg / Green City / Public Spaces

This week is Climate Adaptation Week in Freiburg

City officials invite residents to meet in person for valuable consultations on greening transformations of their living environment

Sep 18, 2023 10:07
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Czechia / Prague / Mobility / Public Spaces

Prague’s historic core bans parking of scooters

Will the Czech capital follow Paris in the anti-two-wheeler crusade?

Sep 15, 2023 18:32

Culture and Tourism

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Latvia / Lithuania / Culture and Tourism

Lithuania and Latvia celebrate Baltic Unity Day

The holiday honours an event when communities from both lands united against the Livonian Crusaders in the 13th century

Sep 22, 2023 15:44
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Italy / Culture and Tourism

Naples celebrates its patron saint San Gennaro on 19 September

The main focus of the festivities is a ‘miracle’, which involves the liquefaction of the saint’s blood

Sep 19, 2023 09:30

Education and Sport

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Romania / Education and Sport / Read Twice

Read Twicе: Romanian partner concludes university seminars on media literacy

Se Poate Association led the training sessions in several cities and engaged over 150 young people

Sep 15, 2023 15:39
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France / Education and Sport / Social City

In France: Abayas out, school uniforms in?

Can any of this fix the country’s education system?

Sep 5, 2023 18:02

Welfare and Health

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Cyprus / Nicosia / Social City / Welfare and Health

Nicosia is going through an 'abandoned dogs' crisis

And the city is pleading with residents to adopt rather than shop

Aug 31, 2023 12:40
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Italy / Welfare and Health

Naples residents go on protest after losing basic income

The Italian government has cancelled the subsidy for able-bodied people of working age

Aug 29, 2023 15:32
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Best of Europe

These Are the Oldest Restaurants in 7 European capitals (Part 2)

Sep 8, 2023 17:27
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Best of Europe

These Are the Oldest Restaurants in 7 European capitals

Sep 1, 2023 17:24
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Best of Europe

The 7 Smallest Inhabited Islands in Europe

Aug 25, 2023 17:33
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Best of Europe

7 Car-Free Islands in Europe to Practice Your Hiking Skills

Aug 18, 2023 17:28
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Culture and Tourism / Best of Europe / Green City

9 European Cities That Are Car-Free

Aug 11, 2023 17:15
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Spain / Culture and Tourism / Best of Europe / Public Spaces

10 Weird Laws: This Time from Spanish Cities

Aug 4, 2023 17:12
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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France / Culture and Tourism / Best of Europe / Public Spaces

10 Weird Laws You’ll Find in French Cities

Jul 25, 2023 12:17
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Italy / Milan / Rome / Venice / Culture and Tourism / Best of Europe / Public Spaces

Ten weird laws in force in Italian cities

Jul 14, 2023 17:38
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Portugal / Spain / Best of Europe / Economy and Finance

Only two European countries rank among top 10 for expats

Jul 11, 2023 17:35
TheMayor.EU
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Croatia / Italy / Spain / Barcelona / Dubrovnik / Venice / Culture and Tourism / Best of Europe / Public Spaces

Six European places that prohibit walking around in swimwear

Jul 10, 2023 17:12
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Interviews / Read Twice

Ibrahim Kraria: While AI can play a role in combating hate speech, it can also amplify its spread

Aug 16, 2023 17:08
Mihaela Roxana GODINAC
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Interviews

Bertrand Piccard: If something looks impossible, that’s why we try do to it!

Jun 9, 2023 15:40
Denis Balgaranov
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Interviews / Read Twice

Maja Sever: Journalism is a pillar of democracy

Apr 10, 2023 13:46
Magdalena Magdić
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Interviews

Kaisa Karjalainen: “It’s better to be an imperfect zero waster for the rest of our lives than a perfect one for two weeks”

Mar 14, 2023 12:56
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Romania / Cluj-Napoca / Digital transformation / Interviews / Politics and Reforms

Online public services as efficient as TikTok: Cluj-Napoca’s Digital Transformation

Feb 16, 2023 13:51
Denis Balgaranov
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Bulgaria / Interviews / Read Twice

Veni Markovski: It's about time the media stopped inviting “experts” who spread false info

Nov 28, 2022 11:30
Denis Balgaranov
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Netherlands / Utrecht / Green City / Interviews

Sharon Dijksma: Without cities, it will be impossible to tackle global warming

Nov 21, 2022 13:41
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
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Interviews / Politics and Reforms

Vasco Cordeiro: The European project is at stake when solidarity is at stake

Aug 1, 2022 11:34
Denis Balgaranov
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Interviews

Cities Mission has made citizen engagement and participatory processes an important part of its functioning

Jul 14, 2022 14:57
ICLEI Europe
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Portugal / Matosinhos / Interviews

Luisa Salgueiro: Climate resilience work is never completed, it’s a continuously upgraded project

Jun 23, 2022 12:41
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov

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Finland image
Finland
Rovaniemi image

Rovaniemi

Rovaniemi
Esko Lotvonen
Mayor

Esko Lotvonen

Biography
View old mayors

Periodic clearance of new land for agriculture  and the practice of slash-and-burn cultivation began around 750–530 BC. Artifacts found in the area suggest that an increasing number of travellers from Karelia in the east, Häme in the south and the Arctic Ocean coast in the north must have come there from 500 AD onwards. The Sami are considered to be Lapland`s most indigenous existing population.

Rovaniemi is first mentioned by name in official documents in 1453, existing effectively as a set of small villages whose inhabitants earned their living mainly in agriculture and animal husbandry with fishing and hunting the most important offshoots.

The exploitation of Lapland's natural resources in the 1800s boosted Rovaniemi's growth. Extensive logging sites and gold fever attracted thousands of people to Lapland. As the mining of natural resources was increased, Rovaniemi became the business centre of the province of Lapland.

During the Second World War, Finland signed the Moscow Armistice and found itself involved in the Lapland War with its former German ally. Retreating German forces utilised scorched earth tactics, and though initially German General Lothar Rendulic ordered only the public buildings in Rovaniemi to be destroyed, on 13 October 1944 the German army received orders to destroy all the buildings in Rovaniemi, only excluding hospitals and houses where inhabitants were present. While the German rear guard was going about the destruction, an ammunition train in Rovaniemi station exploded and set fire to the wooden houses of the town. The German troops suffered many casualties, mainly from glass splinters. A Finnish commando unit claimed to have blown up the ammunition train and may well have been the primary cause of the town's ruin. The cause was then unknown and generally assumed to be the deliberate intent of Rendulic. During these hostilities 90% of all the buildings in Rovaniemi were destroyed. There is a German cemetery 19 km from Rovaniemi where soldiers killed fighting in Lapland during the war are buried.

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Finland / Rovaniemi / Green City / Public Spaces

Hunt your own Xmas tree: that’s the offer in Northern Finland

If you have 10 euros for a permit, and your own axe, then there are designated forests you can head out to

Dec 15, 2022 14:07
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
  • en
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Culture and Tourism / Digital transformation

Hitch a reindeer ride with Uber next week in Lapland

Even more incredibly, it will be free of charge, but it goes without saying, availability is limited

Dec 09, 2022 15:50
Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov
  • en
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Finland / Sweden / Rovaniemi / Culture and Tourism

Where can you see the Northern Lights?

It is now the perfect time to witness the magical display

Jan 11, 2022 13:41
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Austria / Belgium / Denmark / Finland / France / Bruges / Copenhagen / Innsbruck / Rovaniemi / Culture and Tourism

5 European cities that offer an unforgettable Christmas

Where would you go this holiday season?

Nov 16, 2021 15:36
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Interviews

Santa Claus’ hometown hopes for a “fairly good” tourist season this Christmas

An interview with the Managing Director of Visit Rovaniemi Sanna Kärkkäinen

Nov 01, 2021 16:25
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Development / EU funding updates / Welfare and Health

Lapland Central Hospital to undergo renovation worth EUR 72 million

The European Investment Bank will provide financing in the form of a loan

Oct 07, 2021 14:57
Svilena Iotkovska
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Education and Sport / Welfare and Health

Rovaniemi helps young adults plan their future

A new Cultural Workshop will allow the youth to develop skills and discover their strengths

Jul 16, 2021 11:17
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Development / Mobility

New charging infrastructure in Rovaniemi accelerates the green transition

The Finnish city will add 6 high-power charging stations for electric vehicles

Jul 06, 2021 16:28
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Finland / Rovaniemi / Green City

Rovaniemi City Library will reduce its use of plastic

New books will be ordered without plastic covers

May 27, 2021 13:57
Svilena Iotkovska
  • en
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Rovaniemi / Culture and Tourism

Santa Claus Village – open, with precautions in place

The famous amusement park near Rovaniemi, Finland is experiencing a tourist slump due to the pandemic

Dec 21, 2020 14:55
TheMayor.EU
  • en
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Rovaniemi / Education and Sport

Rovaniemi won the European City of Sport 2020 award

The "official" home town of Santa Claus has 600 sports facilities

Nov 08, 2019 08:33
Monika Dimitrova
  • en
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Rovaniemi / Economy and Finance

Rovaniemi, Kuopio and Oulu ranked most attractive for estate investments in Finland

All of them are university cities with comparatively low real estate prices

Jul 18, 2019 14:18
Monika Dimitrova
  • en
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Rovaniemi / Education and Sport

Rovaniemi offers numerous physical activities for free this summer

For every age group – children, adults and elderly people

Jul 16, 2019 13:55
Monika Dimitrova
  • en
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Rovaniemi / Culture and Tourism

Flag Day Parade in Rovaniemi

Everyone is welcome to attend the inspection of the troops at Rovaniemi Keskuskenttä

May 31, 2019 09:48
Monika Dimitrova

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