In the fall of 2024, the city of Lviv applied for the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) 2030 competition and was shortlisted. Now, by the fall of 2025, Lviv will have to prepare a detailed description of its concept and proposed program in order to compete for the title of the European Capital of Culture 2030 with the Montenegrin city of Niksic.

Lviv’s participation in the largest European Union competition in the field of culture was preceded by a long and intense process of developing the application — called Responsibility to Be — and communication and cooperation with the ECoC cities. Cultural Strategy Institute is responsible for preparing and writing the application for the competition as an institution that coordinates the implementation and monitoring of the Lviv Cultural Development Strategy, one of the goals of which is to apply for this competition. In addition, it is also a move towards European integration and, perhaps most importantly, an opportunity to present Ukrainian culture and the experience of Ukrainians on a pan-European scale.

Here is how Lviv’s journey to the ECoC as the first Ukrainian city to compete for this honorable status has been so far.

What happened before

When and how did the history of Lviv and the ECoC begin?

Obviously, many people may have heard about this status at various stages, because the European Capital of Culture program as an annual competition among EU cities was launched forty years ago, in 1985. Since then, the conditions and features of the competition have changed, but the essence remains the same: the goal is to strengthen intercultural dialogue and bring Europeans closer together, to present the cultural diversity and heritage of the EU countries, and to promote awareness of their common history and values. For example, Zenoviy Mazuryk, a museum historian and cultural critic, once shared with us that when he learned about the ECoC competition, he dreamed of such a status for Lviv.

More holistically, the idea of Lviv as a potential ECoC emerged from the environment of the Dzyga artistic association of the 2010s and Ukrainian-Polish cooperation in the field of culture, particularly between Lviv and Lublin. In 2011, this Polish city was preparing an application for the title of ECoC and planned to transfer this status to Lviv as a partner for one month. But then another Polish city, Wroclaw, won the competition. And the Lviv Culture Month was held as part of Wroclaw’s 2016 ECoC program: in April, it hosted concerts by Ukrainian artists, book presentations, film screenings and discussions, and the Third Triennial of Contemporary Ukrainian Art «Ukrainian Cross-Section».

Over the years, the programs of the ECoC cities have also included Ukrainian events and events with the participation of Ukrainian cultural figures. Among them is our project UKRAINE! UNMUTED project in Kaunas at the 2022 ECoC (Lithuania): an exhibition of contemporary Ukrainian art, discussions, a performance block, and a presentation of a collection of essays about Ukraine and Ukrainian culture. This project, with a new discussion and presentation program, was also presented in Tartu at the 2024 ECoC (Estonia). Over the years, the IWC has also established contacts and cooperation with other ECoC cities: Matera, Bad Ischl, Chemnitz, Molenbeek, Lublin — already as the 2029 ECoC, which has a separate program with Lviv under the supervision of the CSI.

In 2022, after Ukraine became a candidate for membership in the European Union, Ukrainian cities were given the opportunity to apply for the ECoC competition (in a separate round, for cities of candidate or potential candidates for EU membership, countries of the European Free Trade Association/European Economic Area). Lviv decided to try (despite the current situation in the country, or even more likely because of it) and apply for the 2030 ECoC call, which was announced in November 2023.

People, people, and people

Preparing the application at the first stage was an intense process. The work started in early 2024 and intensified significantly in the spring and summer until the application was submitted in mid-October 2024. The CSI coordinated various aspects of the process: organization, coordination and moderation of the application process, analysis and discussion of current requests from professional communities/city/country, development of the concept and focus of the program, thinking about projects and messages that are important to share with the rest of Europe, collection and systematization of information, drafting and writing of the application text, its translation and visual design of the application.

However, applying for the ECoC competition is the work and result of the involvement of a large number of people, institutions, partners, their combined efforts, ideas, and actions. A series of meetings, both group and individual, took place. This participatory approach makes the process important and valuable, regardless of the final result.

So far, about 500 people have been involved in the development of Lviv’s application as a candidate for the competition in various formats. These are representatives of the cultural and creative industries and other related fields who have military experience, volunteer, and psychologists who work with veterans. Authors and artists who «research» people and life during the war. Managers who are developing their institutions in Ukraine against all odds, recording losses, engaging in cultural diplomacy, and supporting colleagues from different regions of Ukraine. As well as those representatives of the field from different cities (such as Kharkiv, Mariupol, Berdiansk) who have found refuge or perhaps even a home in Lviv since February 2022 and who are now co-creating the face of the city. Let’s start with the visionary and focus groups.

  • Visioning groups

During the summer of 2024, 5 vision groups worked in the Lviv Skansen. Representatives of different fields were thinking about the present and the possible 2030 (everyone wanted to agree that «in 2030 we are here»), about what and how we can tell others about the war and its experiences, what we can remind them of, and what is important for us now and will obviously be in the future. The following people took part in the discussions and development of ideas:

Nataliia Dziubenko, Yaryna Melnyk, Oksana Forostyna, Vasyl Kosiv, Pavlo Hudimov, Bozhena Pelenska, Iryna Kulynych, Vlodko Kaufman, Zoriana Rybchynska, Bohdana Brylynska, Jurko Prochasko, Maksym Holenko, Olena Haleta, Roman Zilinko, Andrii Linik, Yurko Vovhohon, Marta Kuzii, Yulia Khomchyn, Marta Bilska, Lida Savchenko-Duda, Nataliia Bunda, Bohdan Shumylovych, Hryhorii Semenchuk, Myroslav Marynovych, Volodymyr Biehlov, Alevtyna Shvetsova, Yulian Chaplinskyi, Andrii Bondarenko, Liana Mytsko, Oleksii Kurilyshyn, Khrystyna Boiko, Bohdan Tykholoz, Kateryna Kit-Sadova, Iolanta Pryshliak, Yevhen Ravskyi, Iryna Vlasiuk, Anastasiia Mahera, Lesia Harasym, Kostiantyn Shumskyi, Anton Kolomeitsev, Iryna Starovoit, Khrystyna Rutar, Oleksii Taraban, Khrystyna Lebed, Sophia Opatska, Omelian Oshchudliak, Oleh Yaskiv, Yaryna Shumska, Mariana Mazurak, Iryna Matsevko, Ivan Volynskyi, Oleh Malets, Olha Honchar, Ostap Slyvynskyi, Viktoriia Shvydko, Olha Puzhakovska, Yevheniia Nesterovych, Olha Myrovych, Ostap Manuliak, Yaroslav Hrytsak, Vasyl Tkachuk, Solomiia Tkach, Iryna Shutka, Mykhailo Zakopets, Olha Raiter, Viktoriia Bavykina, Maksym Horbatskyi, Iryna Yaniv, Kateryna Botanova, Serhii Petliuk, Oksana Karpovets, Yuliia Dychka, Olha Kotska, Katya Taylor, Rafal Kozinski.

  • Focus groups

August-September 2024 was the time of focus groups. 12 meetings were held with experts in various fields: music, literature and librarianship, art, education, heritage and architecture, theater, memory and museums, analytics, mental health, foundations and the public sector, media and communications, cultural industries and business.

The participants of these meetings were presented with the concept previously developed by the visioning group and had the opportunity to react, share their thoughts and feelings about the proposed idea. They also discussed culture in the context of current challenges for Ukraine and Europe, the capacity of culture in difficult times, recorded projects that are significant for the city, and shared new ideas on how to present Lviv and Ukraine to others.

Focus group «Literature and librarianship»

Music focus group meeting

Focus group «Memory and Museums»

They joined the focus groups:

Iolanta Pryshliak, Taras Demko, Ostap Manuliak, Mykhailo Baloh, Mariia Chichkova, Iryna Vakulina, Marta Kuzii, Marta Bilska, Solomiia Chubai, Bohdan Sehin, Olha Lozynska, Bohdana Tkachuk, Andrii Kapral, Hryhorii Semenchuk, Oleksandra Koval, Sofiia Cheliak, Halyna Kruk, Yuliia Musakovska, Tetiana Pylypets, Yuliia Slyvka, Vasyl Kmit, Mariana Zahoruiko, Rostyslav Kuzyk, Anastasiia Nechyporenko, Romaniia Strotska, Bohdan Kordoba, Romana Romanyshyn, Andrii Lesiv, Andrii Pavlyshyn, Kateryna Alekseeienko, Ihor Kotyk, Olesia Yaremchuk, Oksana Vaskiv, Sofiia Korotkevych, Yaryna Korotkevych, Liana Mytsko, Olesia Domaradzka, Bohdan Mysiuga, Halyna Tryntsolyn, Bozhena Pelenska, Alla Paslavska, Olesia Datsko, Zoriana Rybchynska, Ivan Khoma, Yaryna Shumska, Oleksii Khoroshko, Daryna Skrypnyk-Myska, Tetiana Prodan, Olha Lishchynska, Myroslava Tsyhanyk, Oleksandr Sedliar, Andrii Yatsiv, Tetiana Bei, Oles Dzindra, Liliia Onyshchenko, Iryna Matsevko, Mykola Sheremeta, Vasyl Karpiv, Iryna Sklokina, Oleh Rybchynskyi, Mariia Kravchenko, Pavlo Bohаichyk, Oleksandra Sosnovska, Iryna Hirna, Yurii Prepodobnyi, Hanna Havryliv, Oleh Tsiona, Oleksii Kravchuk, Uliana Moroz, Andrii Sitarskyi, Halyna Ryba, Oleksandr Fomenko, Maksym Holenko, Oleksii Palianycka, Olha Puzhakovska, Uliana Horbachevska, Mariia Tsymbalista, Viktoriia Sadova, Inna Hnylytska, Anna Chernous, Olena Subach, Tetiana Prodan, Yevheniia Nesterovych, Mykhailo Kobryn, Liubomyr Bilio, Ihor Medvid, Tetiana Vuieva, Andrii Usach, Anna Yatsenko, Svitlana Horina, Mykola Shcherbyna, Bohdana Brylynska, Yurii Lomikovskyi, Nataliia Zaitseva-Chipak, Oksana Darmoriz, Kateryna Kravchuk, Oksana Fitel, Solomiia Tkach, Oksana Potymko, Olha Lutsiv, Eveliia Bilska, Nataliia Bunda, Nataliia Hupalo, Veronika Skliarova, Oksana Dashchakivska, Nataliia Beida, Oleksandra Mandrysh, Iryna Lobanok, Alevtyna Shvetsova, Sofiia Lishchynska, Andrii Linik, Pavlo Koriaga, Olha Raiter, Viktoriia Shvydko, Olha Krupnyk, Otar Dovzhenko, Olha Telypska, Kateryna Slipchenko, Iryna Salo, Olha Bomko, Marichka Ilina, Vsevolod Polishchuk, Kseniia Kleinos, Mariana Savka, Yurii Nazaruk, Andrii Sydor, Mariana Puzhakovska, Yevhen Ravskyi, Tereza Barabash, Kostiantyn Smolianinov, Andrii Saliuk, Mykhailo Barabash.

At the theater focus group

Participants of the focus group «Memory and Museums»

Participants of the focus group «Creative Industries and Business»

After this participatory process, the concept was updated accordingly. So, this is Responsibility to Be. Its essence is to be a responsible witness to the past, to act consciously here and now, and to form a vision of the future. The story that we would like to tell Europe grows out of the experience of Ukrainians — the experience of war and loss, but also of resilience and self-belief. It is about the ability to survive while remaining human, and to create, and about a culture that is ready to take responsibility for what is happening around us, to us, and within us. The three blocks of the program are defined by the concepts: «witness», «care», «envision»; each of the blocks is filled with thematic platforms within which the relevant projects are envisaged.

The application was developed by the CSI team, including Yaryna Melnyk, Yulia Khomchyn, Lida Savchenko-Duda, and Iryna Shutka. Alevtina Kakhidze created thematic works specifically for the application, and Lavryn Shymin and Vlodko Kaufman designed them. There are also specialists who provided translation (Sofia Mingala, Mariana Prokopovych, Andriy Savenets, Oksana Forostyna), technical processes such as printing, logistics, etc. Marta Bilska and Sofia Lenartovych helped organize the meetings. The financial support of the ZMIN Foundation was important along the way.

Lviv’s application (the required number of copies) is in the mail — getting ready to go to Brussels

The application was sent to Brussels — the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education, Culture, Youth, and Sport — in October 2024. Two months later, the competition’s expert committee informed us that Lviv was in the final of the European Capital of Culture 2030 competition.

What’s next 

By the fall of 2025, our city will have to submit a more detailed application. A certain range of issues to be addressed is outlined in the expert group’s report, which is actually a response to the city’s application in the first round of the competition. The Commission evaluated the application according to six criteria that outline the range of expectations from the candidate cities: contribution to the city’s long-term strategy, cultural and artistic content, European dimension, outreach/audience engagement, governance, and implementation capacity.

The review notes that the concept stems from the current needs and aspirations of the city and its residents, combining memory, diversity, and projects for the future, and that a number of initiatives integrate culture with psychological resilience. At the same time, they expect the impact of the ECC program on the city to be more specific, linked to the city’s Cultural Development Strategy and other strategic priorities for Lviv, and to combine cultural, social, economic, and environmental components. Another guideline is to strengthen interdisciplinary cooperation and the range of international partnerships, as the program should cover the widest possible range of actors from different countries, from the ECC cities, and not only from the region, i.e. Eastern Europe (there are currently almost 80 ECC cities, if we take into account the future capitals already identified for 2026-2029). Therefore, it is important to outline plans to engage European artists, organizations, and networks in the cultural sector. Of course, in the context of the European dimension, it is not only about geography, but primarily about content — through the proposed projects, the program should reveal global European challenges and narratives.

The work of Alevtina Kakhidze. Photo by Roman Baluk

Some recommendations relate to developing a strategy for engaging audiences in program activities and developing these audiences, including youth and schoolchildren, as well as vulnerable groups such as single mothers or internally displaced persons. Special attention is paid to digital communication aimed at foreign audiences. There is also an emphasis on the participation of Ukrainians living abroad.

Applicants for the ECoC title are expected to provide certain guarantees of financial support for the program, develop a comprehensive fundraising campaign, further analyze risks and develop alternative options for implementing the program. It is also important to specify in the final application those responsible for the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the program.

More details on the report of the competition’s expert group can be found on the European Commission’s website.

So, we have to detail various aspects of the program and its structure, audiences and budget, develop a communication strategy and work with audiences, management, etc., as well as the European dimension through the issues and variety of partnerships.

What it can bring

The ECoC program is the most ambitious cultural project of the European Union. The initiative was launched to draw attention to European cities and their role in the development of culture, to promote European unity and to learn about the cultural diversity of Europe.

The CSI studied the peculiarities of the ECoC competition, as it has long been interested in the experiences of cities that have received and implemented this status.

It is important to understand the path that a candidate city goes through. As practice shows, the «life cycle» of the program for the winning cities lasts at least 6-9 years from the decision to compete for the prestigious title to the announcement of the results of the competition. The competition is usually announced 6 years before the title is awarded. The implementation of the program of activities lasts approximately one year, and another year is provided for reporting; however, the period before that (up to the year with the status of the ECoC) should also be filled with certain activities. That is, if Lviv receives the title of the 2030 ECoC (which will be announced at the end of 2025), it will launch and implement certain processes and projects in 2026-2029, the results of which will be seen in the year of the ECoC in 2030.

Both photos by Roman Baluk

The experience of other cities shows that a year in the status of a ECoC offers many opportunities. These include revitalizing and/or rethinking cities and activating residents, working with the identity of cities and their communities, and defining the European dimension of cities. It is also about improving the image, both externally (through international cooperation and greater visibility for foreigners) and among residents (the emergence of new cultural products, services, practices, and spaces). It is also worth talking about the development of human capital, including the professional growth of managers, cultural managers, and artists, as well as stimulating the economy, in particular through tourism. It is also about strengthening European integration processes.

Read more about the prospects offered by the program, its obligations, as well as the key functions of the state to support candidate cities for the status of the ESC and the experience of ESC cities in the materials of the CSI:

Of course, now, because of Russia’s total war against Ukraine, it is difficult to predict what might happen in 2030. However, the application involves analyzing risks and developing alternative scenarios for the implementation of the proposed project. For Lviv, for us, the application (and even more so, winning the competition) will be an opportunity to (re)discover our culture to others-but also to ourselves, in particular, the one that grows out of current realities. That is why participation in the ECoC competition is of particular importance.

We are grateful to each one of you who is following this new and interesting path with Lviv! We have a lot of work ahead of us: meetings to discuss the results of the selection for the ECoC competition, work with the application for the final of the ECoC 2030 competition, as well as the new Strategy for the Development of the City’s Culture, which is important in the context of the application.

Translated by Yana Kryzhanivska, participant of the First Career Step program

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