With nearly 587,000 inhabitants, Essen is one of Germany’s ten biggest cities. In the last century, the city gained fame as the centre of the coal and steel industries in Germany, but viewed historically, the period in which these industries held sway was only relatively short. In the year 2002, Essen celebrated the 1150th anniversary of the convent and of the city of Essen. For around 1000 years, Essen was an ecclesiastical principality and was governed by abbesses.

This year, the city of Essen holds the title of Cultural Capital of Europe on behalf of 53 municipalities in the Ruhr District, which has a total of 5.3 million inhabitants and is thus the third largest conurbation in Europe after Paris and London. When it applied for this honorary title, the City of Essen has chosen to involve the whole Ruhr region in its European Capital of Culture programme for 2010. Thus for the first time, a whole region, namely the Ruhr District, has been nominated European Cul-tural Capital, an original initiative and concept where all 53 municipal-ities will be presenting 300 projects and 2,500 events over the course of the whole year.

The programme “Essen for the Ruhr” was...

The European Capital of Culture concept, which started 25 years ago, is still a flagship initiative of the European Union which this year has registered a particular success as, for the first time, three countries and relevant cities from them hold this privilege: Essen (Germany), Pecs (Hungary) and Istanbul (Turkey). What does this challenge mean for Germany to share this honour with Hungary and Turkey?

It has always been a privilege for a country to present one of its cities as “European Capital of Culture”. Think of the wonderful success of Sibiu in 2007. For one year, history, mentality, art, literature, music, traditions, in short: a particular style of life, are in the center of attention of the European family. The idea of three cities from different European countries sharing the title has an additional positive effect: It brings Europeans closer together and enhances their understanding for each other. Symbolically, Essen, Pecs and Istanbul stand for our common European heritage as well as for our close cultural ties: Many Turkish and Hungarian citizens live in Essen and the Ruhr District. It`s the heart of a forward-looking immigration society where more...

With innovative artistic concepts and extraordinary presentations, the new networks of museums, theatres, musical organizations, artists’ associations and art clubs have defined a new standard for a vital cultural metropolis. What is most impressive, however, is how residents have discovered the Capital of Culture for themselves. "All cities and communities, all residents are participating," enthuses Fritz Pleitgen, Chairman of RUHR.2010 GmbH. "This is really a major shift for the region – culture truly can move mountains – mountains of old, outdated thinking."

RUHR.2010 amazes: "We have invited our visitors to extraordinary journeys of discovery each day. RUHR.2010 has amazed everyone. Whether you’re talking about high-brow offerings like Odyssee Europa or crowd-pleasers like Shaft Signs – the Ruhr is now being perceived as a unique cultural arena. Our programming strategy really was right on target," RUHR.2010 GmbH General Manager Oliver Scheytt sums up. "My expectations for the first half of the year have been exceeded – not least of all because local residents are terrific hosts!"

RUHR.2010 draws people: 4.8 million visitors have come to the Ruhr so far this...

The European Capital of Culture event has united – in a previously unknown manner – the 53 cities, towns and parishes in the Ruhr and their 5.300.000 inhabitants into a new metropolitan area.

The Ruhr area is a miniature version of Europe. It has been defined by immigration from countries all over Europe. For centuries the region was dominated by the coal and steel industries, and its inhabitants laboured under the harshest conditions to transform an insignificant strip of land into the powerhouse of German industry.

Despite language barriers and cultural differences the workers in the pits and blast furnaces were forced to rely upon each other blindly. This sense of togetherness has left a strong mark on the identity of its inhabitants, and this is the basis for the pride they feel in being a part of the Ruhr mythology. The decline of the coal and steel industries has been an enormous challenge for the people in the Ruhr: a challenge of change and structural transformation. The people have reacted to this challenge to redefine their identity, in a vigorous, courageous and pragmatic manner. The metropolitan area is now a centre of services and innovations,...

Having already opened 26 stores in Romania, Praktiker has proven a dynamic player on the local market, permanently seeking to adapt to customers’ changing needs. As one of the chains’ slogans says, clients can benefit from a wide range of adapted services, available right in the store: special orders, chromatic mixer for dyes, financial services, transport services, products return guarantee, wood cutting and sewing services. We have tried to find out how had Praktiker cope with the new challenges such as economic crisis, falling income for some Romanians, as well as competition and a changing economic environment. In this regard we have spoken with Interim General Manager Praktiker Romania, Mrs. Monica Hodor. One of the answers refers to partnerships. Others are related to short and medium term perspectives as seen by Praktiker.

Did recession determine people to buy less or reorient their shopping preferences towards low-priced products?

The economic downturn dramatically changed the consumption behavior in Romania. The first and the main tendency was the people’s quickly decreasing appetite for the impulse shopping, which was visible in the retail...

The application for the title of European Capital of Culture goes back to efforts to promote the structure of cultural development in the Ruhrgebiet in the 1990s. This was triggered off by the Emscher Park International Building Exhibition (1989-1999), which consisted of 120 projects to increase the quality of life in the Emscher region and the north of the Ruhrgebiet, and implement the foundations for an economic transformation. In this process cultural aspects of regional development were given a high priority.

The structural transformation of the Ruhrgebiet demanded a high level of commitment from both the residents and businesses in the 53 local authorities. This soon resulted in highly important successes in the area of culture, like the Ruhr Piano Festival and the RuhrTriennale. However, the feature that was missing from the process of strengthening regional cooperation was a sustainable impulse to give the area as a whole a cultural profile and support the Ruhrgebiet as a metropolis in the making.

This was the motivation behind a conference of cultural deputies from the Ruhr Regional Association, who decided in 2001 to apply for the title of European...