From Leeuwarden, with love

April 2026 – Emma Pascal-Heyer, Head of Audience Engagement

I have returned from Friesland, in the Netherlands, with some Gouda cheese, a little liquorice… and a clearer understanding of what “legacy” really means for a European Capital of Culture.

A European Capital of Culture is not a sprint, as people often think. It is a seed we sow, a tree we plant and allow to take root.

And in Leeuwarden, this analogy has quite literally been brought to life. In 2018, during its year as European Capital of Culture, the city brought a moving forest to life through the Bosk project: trees transported across the city, carried by residents with their own hands.

It was to understand this collective strength that I travelled to Friesland. Together with the Centre-Val de Loire Region, we are working alongside our fellow European Capitals of Culture – Évora 2027, Chemnitz 2025, Oulu 2026, Veszprém 2023, Tartu 2024, Novi Sad 2022 and Liepāja 2027 – to explore a crucial question: what should remain once the spotlight fades?

In Leeuwarden, the answer can be summed up in one word: Mienskip. Community.

Over two days, from the Sluisfabriek in Drachten to the museum in Joure, we explored the different dimensions of legacy. It was in Joure, looking at the intricate mechanisms of traditional clocks, that something became clear to me: the legacy of a European Capital of Culture is like a finely tuned mechanism.

The role of a European Capital of Culture is to be the craftsperson who brings together every piece, every talent within a region. The programme of the title year is the pivotal moment: the moment when everything is set in motion.

But the real challenge is to ensure that, once 2028 has passed, this momentum continues and the region keeps moving forward, together.

One image shared during our discussions has stayed with me: that of an egg.

“If an egg is broken from the outside, life ends; if it breaks from the inside, life begins. Great things always begin from inside.”

This idea resonates deeply with our philosophy in Bourges. For the clock to keep ticking, the initial momentum must come from within the egg itself. Legacy is not what happens to remain by chance after the celebrations, but a transformation that we begin building today, from within.

Impact is visible and immediate – it is the spark of the title year. Legacy, on the other hand, is more subtle: it is what transforms the landscape for the long term, once the excitement has faded.

If there is one thing I take away from these discussions, it is that building a successful European Capital of Culture legacy means embracing both our achievements and our doubts. It is not simply a strategy written on paper, but a movement “for everyone and by everyone”, one that must take root everywhere – until it becomes a shared conviction: that of belonging to a region that dared to be bold.

“A dot on the horizon is needed every time,” we were repeatedly reminded.

That point on the horizon is our ability to look far beyond 2028. I return with the conviction that this title will continue to bring our streets and communities into the spotlight for years to come. Because it is together, from within, that the strength of a region is built.