During our three-day program, the city of Lille and LilleMetropolewill invite the participants to question the role of local governments when it comes to planning the ecological and social transition through culture. We will explore the concept of sustainable culture and how it is embodied in day-to-day actions. Professionals from artistic and cultural fields will present challenges they face regarding to inclusion and ecological transition. A series of keynote speeches, round-table discussions, small group presentations, and pathways are planned. Each pathway will lead to workshops around 5 different topics :  

Linking urban and social resilience through cultural action

Make cultural activities more inclusive

Sustainability in performing arts and music

Culture and the sustainable transformation of neighborhoods

Conversion of heritage sites into cultural places

The host of the Eurocities culture Forum is also linked to the Utopia event organised by Lille 3000. Utopia is a themed 6-months event taking place from 14 May - 2 October 2022 in Lille Metropole, the Eurometropolis Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai and Hauts-de‑France Region. Utopia is the 6th edition of Lille 3000, the legacy event stemming from Lille European Capital of Culture 2004. This extraordinary year has had a lasting impact on the city, the region and its cultural dynamism. Lille 3000 has continued the work begun in 2004 through ambitious programs of themed events. Previous themed Lille 3000 events were Bombaysers de Lille (2006), Europe XXL (2009), Fantastic (2012), Renaissance (2015) and Eldorado (2019).

Both Utopia and the Eurocities culture forum emphasize on sustainable culture and the link between man, art and the living environment. Utopia proposes visions of artists, inventors, creators and scientists who question the hierarchy between men and nature. Thanks to Utopia, Art has invaded the city. for example Moss People from the Finnish artist Kim Simonsson, the photo exhibition Arctic and Antarctica of the Belgian photographer Christian Clauwers, on the Boulevards of Lille Metropole, the Nanitos of Jean-François Fourtou and much more. There are several major exhibitions like Novacène in Gare Saint-Sauveur where artists show an utopian civilization called Novacène marked by climatic and environmental changes due to human activity.

Utopia gives also the chance to the inhabitants to rediscover the nature around them in another way. The festive hikes “Caps” offer the public both the opportunity to discover artists (musicians, actors, visual artists) and the possibility to explore places, in the countryside, in a forest, on a beach, in a park, in a neighborhood…For example you can go watch and listen to the “Orchestre National” of Lille playing next to the Deule river under the trees.

The 2022 Eurocities Culture Forum is an opportunity for the participants from all over Europe to be part of the Utopia closing weekend from 30 September to 2 October. Beyond the Eurocities Culture Forum, the Utopia programme, which takes place throughout the whole summer, is a good occasion to visit our metropolis and its region!

UTOPIA | lille3000