EUROPEAN COMMISSION Brussels, 26.11.2015 COM(2015) 580 final REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS Ex Post evaluation of the 2014 European Capitals of Culture (Umeå and Rīga)



REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS Ex Post evaluation of the 2014 European Capitals of Culture (Umeå and Rīga) 1.Introduction This report is presented under article 12 of Decision No 1622/2006/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 2006 establishing a Community action for the European Capital of Culture event for the years 2007 to 2019 , which requires that each year the Commission shall ensure the external and independent evaluation of the results of the European Capital of Culture event of the previous year and report on that evaluation to the other EU institutions. This report puts forward the Commission's position on the main conclusions and recommendations of the external evaluation of the two 2014 European Capitals of Culture . 2.Background to the action 2.1.The EU action for the European Capital of Culture (ECOC) event The initial scheme of "the European City of Culture" was launched at intergovernmental level in 1985 . On the basis of this experience, Decision No 1419/1999/EC established a Community action for the ECOC event for the years 2005 to 2019. Member States were ranked in a chronological order of entitlement to host the event each year. Decision No 1419/1999/EC was replaced by Decision No 1622/2006/EC which kept the principle of a chronological order of Member States but further refined the objectives of the action and introduced new selection and monitoring arrangements. Under this Decision, the ECOC overall aims are to highlight the richness and diversity of European cultures and the features they share, as well as to promote greater mutual understanding between European citizens. ECOC shall strive to foster cooperation between cultural operators, artists and cities in Europe, foster the participation of the citizens living in the city and surroundings while raising the interest of citizens from abroad, and be sustainable and an integral part of the long-term cultural and social development of the city. 2.2.The selection and monitoring of the 2014 European Capitals of Culture In accordance with the Decision No 1622/2006/EC, Sweden and Latvia were entitled to host the ECOC in 2014. Parallel competitions were managed by the relevant authorities of the two Member States. The selection is in two phases: a pre-selection phase (candidate cities are reduced to a short-list) followed by a selection phase (the short-list is reduced to one single candidate). A panel of thirteen members – six of whom nominated by the Member State concerned and the other seven by European institutions – examine the bids from candidate cities on the basis of the objectives and criteria laid down in the Decision. In each of these two Member States, four cities applied, from which two were short-listed in Sweden and three in Latvia . The panel finally recommended that Umeå and Rīga be awarded the ECOC title in September 2009. In May 2010, the two cities were formally designated as ECOC for 2014 by the Council of Ministers of the European Union. After their nomination, Umeå and Rīga were submitted to monitoring arrangements: the progress in the cities' preparations was monitored and guided by a panel composed of the seven independent experts appointed by the European institutions, which also checked compliance with the programme and commitments on the basis of which the cities had been selected. Umeå and Rīga attended two formal monitoring meetings convened by the Commission, in November 2011 and April 2013. The monitoring process ended up with the panel making a positive recommendation to the Commission on awarding a €1.5m prize in honour of Melina Mercouri to both Umeå and Rīga. 3.The external evaluation 3.1.The terms of the evaluation The evaluation explores the implementation of the two 2014 ECOC throughout their lifecycle, from their early inception through to their sustainability and legacy, and considers the impact of hosting the title in the two cities. In particular, it assesses their relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability, draws individual and general conclusions emerging from these two ECOC and considers implications for future ECOC title-holders.

The external evaluation was carried out before the Better Regulation Guidelines entered into force. 3.2.Methodology and limitations of the approach chosen The evaluation and its methodology were designed to satisfy the standard requirement of the Decision, and contribute to develop a more detailed understanding of the performance and achievements of the action. In particular, it provides an opportunity to look back at the previous year in order to highlight lessons and recommendations going forward based on the experiences of the two host cities. As for ECOC 2007-2012 previous evaluations, the intervention logic used by the evaluator was based on a hierarchy of objectives corresponding to the Decision. In order for results to be comparable with previous evaluations, the methodology also follows a consistent approach for evidence gathering and analysis. The two cities were evaluated individually, based on primary data either collected during the fieldwork or provided by each ECOC, as well as the analysis of a range of secondary data sources. Primary data sources included interviews conducted during two visits to each city or by telephone, as well as through an online survey in Rīga. These interviews sought to gain a variety of perspectives on each ECOC, including those of the management teams, decision-makers at local and national levels, plus key cultural operators, a range of partners involved in the delivery of the ECOC and a sample of organisations either leading or participating in ECOC projects. The secondary data sources included information in the original ECOC applications, studies and reports produced or commissioned by the ECOC, events programmes, promotional materials and websites, statistical data on culture and tourism and quantitative data supplied by the ECOC on finance, activities, outputs and results. As was the case with all previous ex post ECOC evaluations, the Commission considers that this methodolody is appropriate to produce a report providing a reasonably solid basis on which sound conclusions can be drawn as to ECOC performance. There is however a lack of hard evidence on the benefits and impact of the ECOC on the two host cities, partly due to the time and budget constraints of the evaluation. As a result, the report's conclusions are more substantiated by the views and opinions of various types of stakaholders than on the (limited) quantitative data available. On the other hand, most of the qualitative evidence, in the form of an on-line survey and interview results, is limited to those directly involved in and somehow benefiting from the programme. Furthermore, some of the objectives set are also broad and difficult to measure and it is too early for this evaluation to have been able to assess any longer term impacts. As a consequence, much of the evidence focuses on ouputs and results or emerging higher level benefits rather than on harder on the ground impacts, which will take more time to materialize. In order to better capture such impacts, it would be useful for the two cities to have longitudinal evaluations, notably to confirm the efficiency of the public spending in the ECOC from a cultural, social and an economic points of view, also using a broader range of evaluative data to support the conclusions. The Commission is fully aware – and accepts – such limitations, which were alreadly identified in its staff working document accompanying its proposal for a Decision establishing a Union action for the ECOC for the years 2020 to 2033. To remedy the situation, the Commission's proposal and the Decision ultimately adopted on this basis foresee that the cities themselves – better positioned to get primary data on the impact of the title – become the key players in the evaluation process. Against this background, it is good to see that Umeå (and to a lesser degree Rīga) have been carrying research to better understand the impact of the ECOC on cultural institutions and local residents, as well as in terms of international dimension and economics. The Commission finds however a sufficient basis in the data and other evidence supporting the evaluation to allow it to share the overall assessments and conclusions of the evaluation, which are considered to provide a broadly true and complete picture of the two 2014 ECOC, although lacking strong data and other independent evidence to support very solid conclusions on efficiency and impacts. 4.The evaluator's findings The evaluation confirms that many of the findings from previous reports, especially those pertaining to the overall relevance, efficiency and effectiveness of the ECOC action, are still valid. These findings have been partially updated and refreshed with the information gathered during the 2014 evaluation wherever possible. This report concentrates on these new elements. 4.1.Relevance of the ECOC action and the two 2014 ECOC According to the evaluator, the two host cities saw the ECOC more as a cultural event strengthening and internationalising their cultural offering as well as promoting the cultural diversity and common cultural features of Europe, rather than an economic or social programme. The report concludes that this made the ECOC a very relevant action in relation with Article 167 TFEU looking at the Union's contribution to the "flowering of the cultures of the Member States". However, the report highlights that Umeå and Rīga also used their ECOC status to tackle other aspects of their respective city's development strategy. As a consequence, many of the activities delivered in 2014 were highly relevant to the two cities' overall political agendas as well as to a range of EU level priorities and objectives in policy areas other than culture, such as urban and regional development, employment, enterprise, tourism as well as general social cohesion policies. 4.2.Efficiency of governance and management and capacity to deliver

The evaluator looked at the cities' capacity to deliver and the efficiency of the governance and management of the ECOC, and it concludes that the delivery mechanisms set up to implement the ECOC generally worked well in both cities. Umeå 2014 was implemented by a team working directly within the Municipality of Umeå. The report highlights that the team benefited from a strong political support from the very outset as the title-year was intended as a tool to achieve local policy objectives, cultural and otherwise, which allowed for the setting of clear objectives. A key feature of the management structure was the use of the "Open Source" approach, based on co-creation and participation. In essence, this approach involved setting broad themes and criteria for the programme as a whole and then inviting cultural operators and other stakeholders to "fill" the programme themselves. Overall, the report considers that the governance of Umeå 2014 worked well, even if the final team was formed relatively late in the development phase and could have been scaled up at an earlier stage to allow earlier development of much of the content of the cultural programme. In Rīga, an arm's length organisation, the Rīga 2014 Foundation, was set up by the City Council to coordinate the application and development stages of the ECOC action. It was led by the former Head of the City Council's Department of Culture. According to the report, this model – not unique in terms of other previous ECOC – proved to be the most appropriate for implementation, as it reduced the administrative burden, avoided some of the bureaucratic processes which apply to State or municipal authorities in the country and ensured some form of independence so that the ECOC programme could be developed "freely" without any significant external influence. The report also positively highlights the stability in the administrative team and in the support given by all political structures along the lifecycle of the project. Both ECOC were designed and delivered in difficult economic times at both city and national levels and therefore financial efficiency was a key aspect of their planning and implementation. Although Umeå and Rīga (respectively 45,6 and 27,3 million euros) had different levels of resources available for their cultural programmes, they both showed that a successful ECOC can be delivered on a relatively modest budget and in times when resources are limited. The report shows that both ECOC were driven by public rather than private sector funding. It stresses that neither city had been able to generate the private sector income they originally set in their applications, with the private sector funding representing less than 10% of the two ECOC's total budget. Although an ECOC is likely to always be highly dependent on public budgets, the lack of progress that both 2014 host cities made in attracting private sector funding through either direct support, sponsorship or advertising is an aspect worth noting. According to the evaluators, this is to some extent due to the current economic situation and it is hoped that as the economic context improves the reliance on the public purse to drive forward ECOC activity will change for the better. 4.3.Effectiveness in developing cultural activities and cultural and artistic content Despite a shortage of comprehensive data on results and impacts, the evaluation concludes that both cities delivered an extremely high volume of cultural activities in 2014 (in total, just under 500 in Rīga under the motto "Force Majeure" and just over 1,000 in Umeå under the slogan "Curiosity and Passion") . Although it is difficult to evidence how much "extra" culture was present in 2014 in the two cities compared to preceding years, many of those taking part in the evaluation estimated that it was "at least double". Both ECOC also managed to design a wide ranging cultural programme which included a strong mix of cultural genres delivered across the whole year and often across various parts of the city and even beyond. They maximised the opportunity available during the year in developing cultural programmes that were neither conservative nor cautious, with cultural events that were bigger and more innovative than before. Although both cities laid on a variety of high profile and "glitzy" events, they also included a large number of smaller cultural activities which were equally well received. According to the evaluator, the artistic control and management in the design of the cultural programmes of both ECOC came from experienced and trusted players who had a real and deep understanding of the cultural agenda of the cities. This artistic knowledge was very much found in the coordination bodies themselves (as well as in the projects) which did more than simply manage and monitor outputs and budgets. 4.4.Effectiveness in promoting the European dimension The report estimates that the cultural programme presented by Umeå in 2014 was more European in nature than the city's cultural offering in previous years. It was based on the overarching concept of Umeå as the "Northern room" in the "European house" and Umeå as a place for border-crossing and long-term collaborations within the Sápmi area covering northern parts of Finland, Norway, Sweden and Russia. Within this overarching concept, a number of specific themes were explored, including some relating to the culture, lands and identity of the Sami people, the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia. The cultural programme – structured around the eight seasons of the Sami calendar – explored and highlighted Sami culture in all its forms, e.g. rock-art, music, crafts, dress. Furthermore, the ECOC enabled Umeå to increase the European – and international – dimension of its cultural offer by collaborations with some international artists, who were specifically invited or commissioned to produce or co-produce events, works and exhibitions. Overall, 195 projects featured some sort of collaboration with artists or other cultural bodies from other (mainly European) countries. Finally, in the evaluator's view, Umeå 2014 – despite a geographical challenge of being relatively isolated up North – did make the most of the ECOC status in its efforts to attract European audiences to the city and put itself "on the map" thanks to its marketing and communication activities. In this regard, the report mentions the positive achievements of the "Caught by [Umeå]" tour, which brought representatives of the city and its cultural sector into direct contact with audiences in several different European cities prior to the opening of the title year as a way to attract them to Umeå. Furthermore the number of nights booked in all tourist accomodations increased by 24% from 2013 to 2014. Regarding Rīga, it appears from the report that the European dimension was reflected in a range of different events and activities. This included projects highlighting shared European themes – such as those linked to World War I or the former KGB building – or the support to exchanges and other mobility programmes from across different EU Member States. In this respect, findings show that 40% of all ECOC projects had an international dimension, i.e. involved foreign individuals (a majority of them European) in project implementation such as performers, artists and event organisers. The ECOC was also seen as a "meeting place" and the opportunity for international artists to come together and work collaboratively on different activities. With regard to raising the international profile of the city (a key motivation of the ECOC project), Rīga 2014 had mixed results. The number of foreign tourists visiting Latvia increased by 18.9% in the first half of 2014 and 2,800 publications mentioned the ECOC in Rīga (of which 98% were positive), but it appears that less than 2% of the audiences came from outside the country. 4.5.Effectiveness in engaging the citizens and in outreach The evaluation considers that one key aspect of effectiveness in both cities was around how the ECOC status was instrumental in widening the appeal and reach of culture to community groups and neighbourhoods that simply would not have experienced culture without the existence of the ECOC. Both programmes were very pro-active in this respect and worked hard to provide cultural content that appealed to a wide variety of different audiences, putting on performances and activities that can be classed as being popular, alternative or innovative in nature. It appears that respectively 71% and 76% of residents in Umeå and Rīga attended an ECOC event while overall 1,6 million people attended ECOC activities in the Latvian capital. Project promoters were encouraged to target underrepresented groups, many activities took place in non-traditional settings outside of the city centre and clear guidance (including during workshops or in the form of guidelines) was given on how best to widen participation. Furthermore the development arrangements in both cities were inclusive and transparent in terms of having open calls for project ideas that came from the "bottom up", so that projects originated from cultural rather than strategic players. The above-mentioned Open Source approach in Umeå proved a very effective tool in granting the local cultural sector and a wide section of the population considerable opportunity to shape and implement the cultural programme in a way that was both authentic and credible. In the view of the evaluator, this approach is however only appropriate for cities with openness to co-creation and for international collaboration, and where there is also a context of trust and a tradition of consensus.