In 2023, Veszprém and the Bakony-Balaton region held the title of European Capital of Culture (ECoC). The experiences of the ECoC year and the opportunities for the region are presented at an international conference on 11th and 12th September. 

As early as in its bid for the title of European Capital of Culture, Veszprém set itself the goal of putting the city and the Bakony-Balaton region on the map of Europe as a creative region, a single entity with a strengthened identity. What efforts has the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 programme made to achieve this and has it succeeded in fulfilling its dream? If so, what was the recipe for success? If only in part, how can we get even closer to delivery? What is it that we can be really proud of about the ECoC title and what made the programme exemplary?  

The answers to these questions will be sought together with Hungarian and international experts at a two-day conference on 11th and 12th September, with talks, round tables and accompanying cultural events. 

The two days also include a series of questions that help us to take stock of the period since the European Capital of Culture title was awarded. See how the region has been enriched by the spotlight on its unique cultural treasures and whether it has succeeded in making its citizens prouder. Has the ECoC programme been able to reach out beyond the local community to others from across the border and beyond? Is there further momentum in the region? How can cultural vibrancy be maintained beyond the ECoC programme year? What opportunities does the experience gained now open up for the region? 

In addition to the biggest international names in the creative profession, the conference features speakers from the region, the developers and partners of the Veszprém-Balaton 2023 ECoC programme, and experts from other ECoC cities, who share their experiences and expertise. 

08.30 – 09.30 Registration 

09.30 – 10.00 Opening  

Greetings: Gyula Porga, Mayor of Veszprém Municipal City

CREATIVE CITY, CREATIVE REGION

10.00 – 10.30 What is the Biggest  Cultural  Project of Our Time?  

Speaker: Charles Landry, author, founder of Comedia, co-founder of the Creative Bureaucracy Festival 

10.30 – 10.50 Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor – A Ranking of Creative Cities  

Speaker: Vladimír Šucha, Head of the European Commission Representation in the Slovak Republic

KEEP SHINING, VESZPRÉM-BALATON!

10.50 – 11.15 Keep Shining, Veszprém-Balaton! Lessons of a season, the future of a region  

Speaker: Alíz Markovits, CEO, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc.  

11.15 – 12.25 Round Table Talk: The Experience of the Veszprém-Balaton Region 

Moderator: Zoltán Mészáros, Chief Adviser to the CEO, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc.   

Participants:  

Bernadett Grászli, Art Historian, Director, House of Arts Veszprém 

Natália Oszkó-Jakab, Festival Director, Valley of Arts Festival; President of the Board of Trustees, Hungarian Tourism Programme Foundation 

András Szöllősi-Nagy, MOMÜ/Szöllősi-Nagy – Nemes Collection, Balatonfüred 

Erika Bebesi, Director, Boronclassic Festival, Marcali 

Réka Oszkai, Director, Kisfaludy Sándor Community Centre, Library and Memorial House, Sümeg; Táj-Kapocs Foundation 

12.25 – 13.30 Lunch break 

13.30 – 13.45 What Does the Data Show? Veszprém-Balaton 2023 and Timișoara 2023 Monitoring Results 

Speaker: Dóra Kanizsai-Nagy, Monitoring Officer, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc. 
Raluca Iacob Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, Timișoara 2023 

GENIUS LOCI

13.45 – 14.00 Kraft Veszprém 2017- 2024: lessons from a large-scale survey on the path to becoming a creative city region 

Speaker: Mariann Szabó, researcher, project leader, Institute of Advanced Studies (IASK) Kőszeg; General Vice-Head, senior lecturer, Department of Environmental Economics and Sustainable Development, Technical University Budapest 

14.00 – 14.15 Veszprém on the Way to Becoming a Good Place, or Keeping Up the Shine 

Speaker: Gábor Michalkó, Professor, Department of Tourism, University of Pannonia; Scientific adviser, HUN-REN CSFK Institute of Geography 

14.15 – 15.15 Round Table Talk: What Makes Veszprém and the Region a Good Place, and What Will Make it Even Better a Lifetime From Now? 

Moderator: Katalin Lőrincz, Vice-Dean, University of Pannonia Faculty of Economics 

Participants: 

Gyula Porga, Mayor, Veszprém 

Ferenc Miszlivetz, Director General, Institute of Advanced Studies Kőszeg 

Gergely Kabai, social researcher, policy analyst, Mayor of Hollád 

Balázs Kovács, tourism expert, Head of Office, GD Consulting 

Vera Schleicher, ethnographer, Museum of Ethnography

HERITAGE AND FUTURE - DILEMMAS OF A CULTURAL LANDSCAPE

15.15 – 15.30 Europa Nostra - Cultural Heritage Protection 

Speaker: Graham Bell, Board Member of Europa Nostra 

15.30 – 15.45 Future landscape scenarios around Lake Balaton 

Speaker: Samu Szemerey, Professional Leader, Hungarian Contemporary Architecture Centre; Head of Architecture and Urban Studies, DANU 

15.45 – 16.30 Round Table Talk: An Eternal Dilemma; Balancing Development and Conservation 

Moderator: Beáta Fehérvölgyi, Dean, University of Pannonia Faculty of Economics 

Participants:  

Gábor Mayer, State Secretary Responsible for Regional Development, Ministry of Public Administration and Regional Development  

Ákos Czeglédy, Mayor, Paloznak 

Tamás Fejérdy architect, specialised engineer in monument conservation, DLA 

Samu Szemerey, Professional Leader, Hungarian Contemporary Architecture Centre; Head of Architecture and Urban Studies, DANU 

András Huszár, CEO, HelloWood Jsc. 

16.30 – 16.45 Small Settlement Cultural Capacity Building as a Means of Community Building - Results of the Pajta (Barn) Programme Research  

Speaker: Judit Sulyok, Senior Researcher, Department of Tourism, University of Pannonia 

Krisztián Nagy, project manager, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc. 

16.45 – 17.45 Round Table Talk: Small Settlement Communities As the Driving Force of the Region  

Moderator: Izabella Agárdi, Historian, Cultural Researcher, Institute of Advanced Studies, (IASK), Head of Campus, University of Pannonia, Kőszeg 

Participants: Antal Varga, President, Retirees’ Community and Traditional Values Preservation Association, Olaszfalu 

Edit Szabó Posza, Mayor, Somogyszentpál  

Csaba Tóth, Mayor, Lesenceistvánd 

Tibor Hoffner President, Central Transdanubian Alliance for the Youth (KÖSZI), Taliándörögd  

Mária Ivicz Boros, Chairman of the Board, Public Foundation for the Survival of Vászoly 

Mrs Tibor Szirbek, Mayor, Nagyesztergár

18.00 Opening of the retrospective exhibition of sculptor Mária Lugossy
Dubniczay Palace, Castle Gallery, Vár utca 29. Veszprém, 8200

19.30 FOOD FOR THOUGHT 
Standing reception and cultural programme at ActiCity

WHAT'S NEXT, VESZPRÉM-BALATON?

08.30 – 09.30 Registration 

9.30 – 10.00 A Region’s Dream or a Region of a Dream? 

Speaker: Tibor Navracsics, Minister of Public Administration and Regional Development 

10.00 – 11.00 Round Table Talk: The Significance of the Bakony-Balaton Region on the Cultural Map of Europe 

Moderator: Nóra Winkler, Cultural Affairs Expert 

Participants: Péter Hoppál, Government commissioner for the Hungarian-Turkish cultural season  

Tibor Navracsics, Minister of Public Administration and Regional Development 

Alíz Markovits, CEO, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc. 

János Can Togay, Chief Artistic and Creative Adviser, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc. 

11.00 – 11.20 The Role of the University in Strengthening a Cultural Creative Region 

Speaker: János Abonyi, Rector, University of Pannonia 

11.20-11.35 Direct EU Funds, International Cooperation, Bidding Opportunities 

Speaker: Bernadett Petri, Ministerial Commissioner for the Coordination of the Use of Direct EU Funds, Ministry of Public Administration and Regional Development 

11.40– 12.00 Coffee break

LONG-TERM PLANNING: THE CONTINUED EXISTENCE OF ECoC PROGRAMMES

12.00 – 12.20 From impact to legacy value: developing long-term effects from cultural programmes

Speaker: Greg Richards, Professor of Leisure Studies, Tilburg University

12.20 – 13.20 Round Table Talk: Walking in the Same Shoes. European Capital of Culture Programme Lessons Learned 

Moderator: Neil Peterson, International Relations Liverpool 2008  

Participants: 

Sara Vuletic, Director of Program, Foundation „Novi Sad 2022 – European Capital of Culture" 

Ramóna Laczko-David, International Relations, Timișoara 2023 

Zetta Pasparaki, Director of Performing Arts, Eleusis 2023;  

Friderika Mike, Programme Director, Veszprém-Balaton 2023  

Kuldar Leis, CEO, Tartu 2024 

András Horváth, Architect, Vice-President, South Transdanubian Chamber of Architects; Pécs 2010 

13.25 – 14.10 Round Table Discussion: The Role of Rural Mobility in Building a Creative Region 

Moderator: Dóra Kanizsai-Nagy, Monitoring Officer, Veszprém-Balaton 2023 Jsc. 

Participants:

Lóránd Bói, Deputy State Secretary responsible for Transport Strategy, Ministry of Constructions and Transport

László Reich, Director of Business and Service Development, MÁV-START Railway Passenger Transport Jsc. 

István Polgári, CEO, V-Busz Bus Transportation Ltd. 

Kinga Temesi Tóth, Head of Office, Institute for Transport Sciences and Logistics 

14.10 – 15.30 Lunchbreak

15:00 Hungarian Development Promotion Office (MFOI) SourceHUB Community Office – Official Opening and Bidding Information Session – 25 Óváros Square, Veszprém

(The event requires registration: [email protected])

The goal of the Hungarian Development Promotion Office and the University of Pannonia is to create a meeting point for cultural and creative industry actors in Veszprém and its surroundings, where they can contribute to the region's further development through business development, training and information on direct European Union funding.

15.50 Hungarian Development Promotion Office (MFOI) SourceHUB - bidding info presentation - 25 Óváros tér, Veszprém

(Registration required: [email protected])

16.00 Ceremonial Re-inauguration of the Millennium Monument in Szabadság Square

The Millennium Monument was created to commemorate the 1000th anniversary of the founding of the Hungarian state, by Mária Lugossy, Munkácsy Mihály Award-winning Meritorious Artist. The work, erected by the Municipality of Veszprém, is a time gate symbolising the sense of identity of the Hungarian people that has crystallised over a thousand years of history. It is a transparent prism that receives and transmits sacral light; this is the essence of the work, both in content and form. The monument used to stand in Old Town Square before it was removed and restored in 2023. Its ceremonial re-erection takes place in Szabadság Square at 16.00, 12th September. 

The conference is held in Hungarian and English, with simultaneous interpretation.