One Year On, Back at the Heart of a Europe of Culture

One year after its first visit to Brussels, the Bourges 2028 team returned to the heart of European cultural dynamics, where tomorrow’s cultural cooperation is being shaped in very concrete ways.

Pascal Keiser, Louise Tournillon and Nicolas Lioi-Nero travelled to the European capital for an intensive programme of meetings, combining a key knowledge-sharing session with a series of strategic discussions.

Invited by the Alliance Française de Bruxelles as part of its Conférence du midi, Pascal Keiser shared a formative experience: his role as General Commissioner of Mons 2015. This look back at Mons 2015 places the Bourges 2028 project within a broader European continuity, shaped by heritage, learning and looking ahead.

Beyond this presentation, the visit provided an opportunity to initiate and deepen discussions with several key players in the European cultural landscape.

In Leuven, a meeting with the Leuven 2030 team opened up a dialogue between cities preparing for or pursuing European cultural ambitions, bringing different approaches together and helping to shape new perspectives.

In Brussels, discussions with Pierre Thys, Director of Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles, as well as with the Centre-Val de Loire Region’s Brussels office, helped further anchor the project within its institutional and artistic environment.

The team also held a series of meetings with leading European stakeholders:

– Bogdan Zdrojewski, First Vice-Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Culture and Education;
– Judith Videcoq, Head of the Creative Europe Unit at the European Commission, responsible for the Culture strand of the programme;
– the cabinet of European Commissioner Glenn Micallef;
– Hughes Becquart and Solène Gautron, as part of the New European Bauhaus;
– as well as the ERRIN network, bringing together more than 150 European regions.

These exchanges are helping to further position Bourges 2028 within existing European frameworks, while opening up new opportunities for cooperation.

In just a few days, the visit helped strengthen relationships, identify potential partners and develop concrete ideas for collaboration at European level.

What the team brought back from Brussels goes beyond a list of contacts: a clearer understanding of European programmes and mechanisms, stronger working frameworks and a gradually growing presence within European cultural networks.

All of these developments are contributing to the building of Bourges 2028 – a project deeply rooted in its local area, but firmly looking towards Europe.