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Welcome – En Route!

The programme of Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe has many features that comprise its uniqueness in the landscape of cultural heritage programmes and policies across Europe. Central to these features is the complex and wide range of partners and stakeholders that are part of the programme and who participate in its activities. From the European to the national and local levels, from public institutions to local associations and individual volunteers, there are several thousand people and institutions that form the community of Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

Information and communication about the programme development and implementation is essential for keeping these formal and informal networks connected and involved.

It is with great pleasure that I share the news of our relocation to new offices in the vibrant heart of Luxembourg City. We look forward to the opportunity to connect with many of you there soon as we work together to further our initiatives.

I am also very pleased to be relaunching this newsletter in the hope that it will contribute to making the programme a better programme through regular communication. We are committed to publishing every six weeks, and we count on you for its dissemination and also for its relevance, for example by sharing your news with us.

Rui GOMES

Executive Secretary, Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes, Council of Europe

On 25 and 26 February, the Bureau of the Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) met in Luxembourg to prepare the upcoming Governing Board meeting and review ongoing activities and programme developments.

Chaired by Sergio ORTEGA MUÑOZ, the members of the Bureau reviewed the Report of Activities for 2025, the draft Programme of Activities for 2026. The meeting took place in the new facilities of the EICR, which also inaugurated a new hybrid meeting system. Bureau members expressed their admiration and gratitude for these installations, reflecting the continuous support of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg for the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme and the EICR. 

A major focus of the meeting was the review of the 2025-2026 certification and evaluation cycle, including eight regular evaluations and six applicants.

Each year, the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme sees several cultural route networks applying for certification. To be eligible for certification by the Council of Europe, candidate routes must comply with the certification criteria established in Resolution CM/Res(2023)2.

The call for applications for certification as “Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe” for the 2026-2027 certification cycle is now open. Routes interested in applying should notify their intention to apply to the Secretariat by sending a letter of intention to the attention of the Executive Secretary of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe no later than 31 March 2026.

The Cultural Routes programme assigns an important role to young and youth participation. For example, the themes of the routes must lend themselves to cultural and educational exchanges for young people; the activities of the routes must also include Cultural and educational exchanges for young Europeans. The call of the Reykjavík Declaration for the inclusion of a youth perspective across the work of the Council of Europe further supported these aims and provides an opportunity to further promote youth participation across the whole programme.

A Working Group on Youth Participation in the Cultural Routes will meet for the first time in Luxembourg on 16 March to review the current status and forms of youth participation in the routes. The group will also make proposals for a medium-term development process in the programme and in the cultural routes. The group brings together representatives of the Advisory Council on Youth and youth leaders active in Cultural Routes.

On 28 January, the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe crossing Germany gathered in Lübeck at the invitation of The Hansa, certified as a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe in 1991.

The meeting enabled representatives of Cultural Routes crossing Germany to exchange on their activities and experiences, while addressing common challenges and opportunities for cooperation at national and European levels, with a particular focus on strengthening national coordination.

An exhibition highlighting the 34 Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe in France, organised by the Ministry of Culture of France, will travel to several locations throughout the country in 2026.

After having being displayed for two months at the Maison de l’Europe in Paris at the end of 2025, at the University of Artois in Arras in January and at the Nausicaá National Sea Centre in Boulogne-sur-Mer in February, the exhibition will be presented in Brest at Le Quartz, on the French Hiking Federation Congress (26-29 March). In April, it will travel to La Rochelle for the Hanseatic Days, organised annually by The Hansa.

The 2nd International Conference on Universities and Cultural Routes will take place on 12 and 13 November 2026, in Lugano (Switzerland), organised by the European Institute of the Cultural Routes and the Università della Svizzera Italiana (member of the University Network for Cultural Routes Studies).

Researchers are invited to submit ongoing research or already published papers and original research until 19 April.

The conference aims to highlight research and academic activities related to cultural routes, to strengthen the University Network for Cultural Routes Studies, to foster collaboration between academics and practitioners and to disseminate scientific knowledge about the cultural routes and their role in promoting a European identity.

As part of the programme of the Moldovan Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, a seminar will be held from 15 to 17 April 2026 in Chișinău, offering a comprehensive overview of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme.

The seminar is organised by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Moldova, National Tourism Office and the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, in cooperation with the European Institute of Cultural Routes.

This event will serve as a platform for cultural and heritage stakeholders in the Republic of Moldova to become more familiar with the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme and to contribute to its development in the country. Participation is open to representatives of Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.