Commission and Europa Nostra announce Europe’s top heritage award winners 2021

The winners of the European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards, Europe’s top honour in the field, were awarded yesterday at the headquarters of the Giorgio Cini Foundation in Venice. The ceremony is among the highlights of the European Cultural Heritage Summit 2021 that is taking place from 21-24 September in the World Heritage City of Venice. The remarkable rehabilitation of the Wooden Church of Urși Village (Romania) is the big winner of 2021: the jury granted it a Grand Prix while the general public selected it as their favourite heritage project in Europe and proud winner of this year’s Public Choice Award. Some 7,000 citizens from all over Europe voted online via the Europa Nostra website. The Grand Prix laureates, chosen by the Board of Europa Nostra on recommendation by an independent jury of experts, will receive €10,000 each. Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said: “I warmly congratulate the impressive winners of the European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards 2021 for their success and remarkable contributions to our Europe of Culture. The far-reaching impact of the winners illustrate the invaluable contribution of Europe’s cultural heritage to our society, economy and the environment. At a moment when Europe is determined to build back better, these success stories are a true inspiration and a powerful example of what we, as Europeans, can achieve together despite the challenges we are faced with. I hope these Awards will help your excellent projects thrive and play an even more important role in the recovery of our Europe.” The European Heritage Awards / Europa Nostra Awards were launched by the Commission in 2002 and have been run by Europa Nostra ever since. The Awards have the support of the Creative Europe programme of the European Union. The Summit contributes to two key citizen-driven initiatives launched by the EU institutions, namely the New European Bauhaus and the Conference on the Future of Europe. Please find more information on the winners and on the initiative here.