In 2004, Edinburgh was the first city to join the UNESCO Creative Cities network. There are currently 19 cities appointed in seven thematic areas, as listed below.
The UNESCO Creative Cities titles are permanent, non-competitive designations intended to recognise:
- Past - a strong cultural heritage
- Present - vibrant and diverse contemporary cultural scene
- Future - aspirations and vision to develop cultural potential
The Creative Cities will work together, in particular with cities in their own creative area, to:
- Highlight each city's cultural assets
- Share knowledge within the network
- Build local capacity and train local creative participants in business skills
- Promote diverse cultural products
- Cultivate innovation through exchange of experience and expertise
- Make creativity an essential element of economic and social development
UNESCO Cities of Design
|
Find out more about the current Cities of Design: Berlin, Buenos Aires Kobe, Montreal, Nagoya and Shenzhen. |
UNESCO Cities of Folk Art
|
Find out more about the current Cities of Folk Art: Aswan, Kanazawa and Santa Fe |
UNESCO Cities of Literature
|
Find out more about the current Cities of Literature: Edinburgh, Iowa City and Melbourne |
UNESCO Cities of Music
|
Find out more about the current Cities of Music: Bologna, Gent, Glasgow and Seville |
UNESCO City of Film
|
Find out more about the current City of Film: Bradford |