The European Cooperation Day is an event dedicated to promoting territorial cooperation in Europe. It highlights positive results of projects implemented throughout different regions and different countries. The European Cooperation Day takes place as a local event in which the community can see first-hand how cooperating across borders improves life in and around Europe.
The European Cooperation Day is organized every year around 21 September. Hundreds of cross-border celebrations are organized every year by Interreg programmes both in EU and neighbouring countries, with the joint idea to share borders and bring our neighbours together.
The Managing Authority and Joint Secretariat are celebrating the European Cooperation Days every year. So far, we organized European Cooperation Days in Skradin (HR), Šibenik (HR) and Herceg Novi (MNE). Scroll down for more information on past celebrations.
More info on the European Cooperation Day initiative can be found on the website www.ecday.eu.
The European Cooperation Day 2016 was organised on 23 September in Skradin, a small Mediterranean town set in Šibenik’s hinterland. A ceremony held at the Square of Mala Gospa welcomed participants of both the Interreg IPA CBC Programme Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro 2014-2020 and Interreg IPA CBC Programme Croatia – Serbia 2014-2020. After a short formal part of the ceremony, visitors listened to traditional Dalmatian music and took part in the “millennium photo”, which recorded the friendly relations between the countries participating in the two Programmes and cooperating across borders. Afterwards, participants visited the National Park Krka.
The European Cooperation Day 2017 was celebrated on 7 October at St Michael’s Fortress, one of Šibenik’s most important fortresses that was revitalized using EU funds in 2014. Ms Gabrijela Žalac, Minister of Regional Development and EU funds, and Ms Stella Arneri, Director of the Agency for Regional Development of the Republic of Croatia, welcomed visitors of the event and shared their thoughts on the accomplishments of the Interreg IPA CBC Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro 2014-2020 and Interreg IPA CBC Croatia – Serbia 2014-2020 Programmes.
With the 1st Call for Proposals of the Interreg IPA CBC Croatia – Bosnia and Herzegovina – Montenegro 2014-2020 closing at that time, the event hosted signing of 4 new Subsidy Contracts – NeurNet, RMPPI, COMPETE PLAMET and STRONGER.
After the formal part of the European Cooperation Day programme, visitors had the chance to enjoy traditional music and learn about the traditional cuisine of our Programme areas.
The European Cooperation Day 2018 was marked on 3 October with three children’s homes from Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro in our very own cross-border art colony in Bijela, Montenegro.
This year’s idea was to help create a cooperative Europe by letting the children lead the way and paint our future together in a form of an art colony.
The event gathered children from three homes for children from Dubrovnik (HR), Mostar (BA) and Bijela (MNE). The program started with a theatre show performed by children of the Bijela home for children, who delivered an important message to protect our environment and preserve it for future generations. A show performed by professional facilitators followed and taught the children ideas of being caring, kind and considerate to our environment and friends. After the show, the event moved outdoors and made the colouring and painting activities more fun.
Groups of children from three countries participating in the Programme decorated the T-shirts branded with this year’s logo and painted canvases with natural elements of our programme area. The children also helped a professional street artist in painting a wall mural with elements of the three cities from which the children arrived – Kanli fortress of Herceg Novi, Mostar’s old bridge and the city walls of Dubrovnik. At the end of the event, Programme bodies provided gifts for homes for children participating in the event to remember the fun activities of European Cooperation Day 2018 in Herceg Novi.
Why an art colony? We believe it is the best way to highlight the role of children and young people in building the Europe they want. We believe it is the best way to tell the story of cooperation between Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro as well.
In 2019, the EC Day was organized on 18 October at the Kamena kuća, located in Banja Luka’s Kastel fortress.
With the EC Day 2019 theme titled ‘Europe is you’, our idea was to acknowledge the role of citizens and the local community as most valuable partners of the European Union. Several hundred visitors joined our celebration and learned how our projects increase cultural understanding throughout our Programme area.
The program included an interactive exhibition about Interreg, our Programme and collages and paintings made as part of the EC Day 2018.
A project fair presented achievements of our projects: MELAdetect, Smart Schools and Fortress ReInvented.
Finally, a cycle cinema was set up on the second floor of Kamena kuća and welcomed visitors to cycle and in this way power generators that showed video clips about our projects, Interreg and past EC Days. A power-generating competition was organized also, in which prizes were given to cyclists producing the most energy.
Why this kind of program for an EC Day? Following this year’s theme, the exhibition invited visitors to express their thoughts about the EU and think of possibilities that it offers to citizens, giving citizens not only a participating role but also a role of designers of the exhibition. The project fair included projects that cooperated with the local community in innovative ways, such as introducing new tools for tracking personal health, providing better education for children and developing new tourism facilities. By organizing the cycle cinema, we wanted the visitors to become part of the event and contribute to screenings of videos, as well as to experience first-hand how energy can be produced in a clean, sustainable and fun way.
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