Decision 2011/1194 - Decision 1194/2011/EU establishing a EU action for the European Heritage Label - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 303/1

The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) aims at an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe and confers on the Union the task, inter alia, of contributing to the flowering of the cultures of the Member States, while respecting their national and regional diversity and at the same time bringing the common cultural heritage to the fore. In this respect, the Union, where necessary, supports and supplements Member States’ action to improve the knowledge and dissemination of the culture and history of the European peoples.

A better understanding and appreciation, especially among young people, of their shared yet diverse heritage would help to strengthen the sense of belonging to the Union and reinforce intercultural dialogue. It is therefore important to promote greater access to cultural heritage and to enhance its European dimension.

The TFEU also establishes citizenship of the Union, which complements national citizenship of the respective Member States and is an important element in safeguarding and strengthening the process of European integration. For citizens to give their full support to European integration, greater emphasis should be placed on their common values, history and culture as key elements of their membership of a society founded on the principles of freedom, democracy, respect for human rights, cultural and linguistic diversity, tolerance and solidarity.

An intergovernmental European Heritage Label initiative (‘intergovernmental initiative’) was launched on 28 April 2006 in Granada, Spain.

On 20 November 2008, the Council adopted conclusions (3) aimed at transforming the intergovernmental initiative into a Union action (‘action’) by inviting the Commission to submit to it a proposal for the creation by the Union of a European Heritage Label (‘label’) and to specify the practical procedures for the implementation of the project.

The public consultation and the impact assessment carried out by the Commission confirmed the value of the intergovernmental initiative but indicated that it needed to be further developed to reach its full potential, and that the involvement of the Union could provide it with a clear added value and help it to take a qualitative step forward.

The label should benefit from the experience gained from the intergovernmental initiative.

The label should seek added value and complementarity with regard to other initiatives such as the Unesco World Heritage List, the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and the Council of Europe’s European Cultural Routes. Its added value should be based on the contribution made by the selected sites to European history and culture, including the building of the Union, on a clear educational dimension reaching out to citizens, especially young people, and on networking between the sites to share experiences and best practices. The main focus of the action should be on the promotion of and access to the sites as well as on the quality of the...