The title of European Capital of Culture will be awarded annually to a single city in the European Union under a new procedure as of 2005. Unlike before, a different country will be featured each year. In 2010, it will be Germany’s turn. Following preliminary voting at the level of Germany’s Länder (federal states), 10 of the initial 17 cities still remain in competition for the European award. In North-Rhine Westphalia, Essen, which is the biggest city of the Ruhrgebiet, beat rival contenders Cologne and Münster, and national balloting in March 2005 left only the East German city of Görlitz to compete with Essen for the title. Both candidancies are now being examined by an EU jury, and the European Council is due to announce the final decision in mid-2006.
Essen is competing for the title of European Capital of Culture 2010 as the representative of the Ruhrgebiet, or Ruhr valley area. It is Europe’s third-largest conurbation with more than five million inhabitants drawn from 140 countries, and with 53 cities and municipalities, the Ruhrgebiet is also one of Europe’s most densly populated areas. The joint Essen and Ruhrgebiet application carries the title “Change through culture – culture through change.”
The Ruhrgebiet has played a key role in European history. Europe’s post-war unification process saw its first beginnings with the European Coal and Steel Community. Earlier, over a period of some 150 years, the area between the Ruhr, Emscher, and Lippe rivers had grown into a gigantic industrial zone, with heavy industry leaving its mark on the region. Today, the region’s industrial character is guarded as a cultural heritage that sets the Ruhrgebiet apart from many other urban landscapes.
A major asset of the Ruhrgebiet is its diversity. Typically, one might work in Bochum, live in Essen, go to the theatre in Recklinghausen, and attend a concert in Dortmund. All points in the Ruhrgebiet are within easy reach so its inhabitants can take advantage of the rich cultural offerings across the whole area. The Ruhrgebiet is, indeed, more like a single big city and is referred to as the Ruhr Metropolitan Area. But unlike traditional cities, the Ruhrgebiet has kept its decentralised structures and features a variety of centres and peripheries.
The City of Essen is thus proud to represent the Ruhrgebiet in the competition to become 2010’s European Capital of Culture. In addition to its 1,150-year history and its character as the business capital of the Ruhrgebiet, Essen is the hometown of the internationally-acclaimed Folkwang museum and school of art, and has an especially strong affinity to the motto of the campaign. Culture is one of the central characteristics of its transformation from an industrial city to a modern energy and services metropolis. In this context, the cultural blossoming as a UNESCO world heritage site of the former coal mine “Zeche Zollverein” to the north of Essen is of special relevance.
Ruhrgebiet inhabitants’ support for Essen’s bid to become the European Capital of Culture has generated great enthusiasm, as was illustrated by the “100,000 People” campaign sponsored by the WAZ newspaper group and RAG. In this, thousands volunteered to put a human face to Essen’s candidacy. Last spring, 2,500 faces were proudly displayed on the façade of RAG’s corporate headquarters – an image that came to personify the candidacy of the Ruhrgebiet.
The Ruhr Metropolitan Area boasts features that we proudly believe are unmatched by any other region in Germany. In a spirit of warm and friendly competition, the Ruhrgebiet and Essen cordially invite the whole of Europe to experience and share with them their journey of discovery, experience and movement.