The development strategy is an agreement of the eight local governments of the county and partner organisations drawn up under the coordination of the Association of Municipalities of Tartu County.
The basic principles of the Tartu County development strategy are co-creation and innovation, a sustainable way of thinking, valuing traditions, and urban and rural cohesion. The aim of the development of the county is to increase the well-being of the residents of Tartu County and to provide an excellent living and business environment for both current and new residents.
Focus area 1. WELL-BEING: The diverse, innovative, and accessible services of Tartu County empower residents and support communities.
Measure 1.2: Strengthening the vitality of the culture of Tartu County.
Area of action 1.2.1: Ensuring a versatile, high-quality, and sustainable cultural life.
Activity: Maximising the effects of Tartu as the European Capital of Culture in 2024 and supporting the internationalisation of cultural life.

Liepāja State City and Southern Kurzeme District Development Program is a local-level medium-term development planning document, closely related to long-term planning documents. The Development Program prioritizes leveraging the ECoC 2027 legacy to foster regional cohesion and innovation. Under the ‘Cultural Environment, Tourism, and Sports’ priority, it includes measures to sustain ECoC-initiated networks between municipalities, cultural institutions, and businesses, develop funding mechanisms for post-2027 cultural infrastructure and STEAM education programs, and promote Liepāja’s international visibility as a creative hub. The action and investment plan serves as the main tool for implementation, focusing on integrating cultural education with general educational programs to expand accessibility and increase interest among a wider circle of young people. The Development Board of the Liepāja city municipality administration is responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and updating the program.

The Cultural Strategy of Oulu meets the challenges of Oulu’s development. The strategy was unanimously approved by the City Council in order to give culture a central role in the development of the future in Oulu. Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture was seen as the main tool and platform for a long-term culture led development.

The biggest challenge of the region is the demographic change: young people move to the South after graduating, because Oulu can not offer them the same versatile opportunities as the Metropolitan Region. Oulu Region’s share of CCI’s National GDP is 3 %, while the share of Helsinki Region is 69%.
Focus area 1: Stronger basis for the creative ecosystem which will have better opportunities to create new jobs in cultural and creative industries.
Measure 1.2. Strengthening the opportunities for children and young people to develop their creative talents
Area of Action 1.2.1: Creating new models of children’s culture will give the children and young people in Oulu more equal opportunities to develop their creative talents, get courage to apply for art education and choose creative professions.
Activity: Maximising the effects of Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture and creating a strong local and international network ensuring the continuity of the good practises created during the long ECoC process.

The PI meets 3 ambitions: to relaunch & support, to network & animate, to inspire & unite with 6 axis and 35 cross-cutting measures such as a structuring framework for future actions linked to Bourges 2028. The legacy, the future European City of Artists Melina Mercouri, is linked to the needs of professional networks in all cultural sectors (Scène O Centre/performing arts, Devenir.art/visual arts, Fraca-Ma/ contemporary music, Métiers Culture/training, Ciclic/books & film), anchored in the local cultural ecosystem led by the City of Bourges and in the regional ecosystem led by RCVL and the French government. This innovative tool will help key players supported by public subsidies or involved in the market economy (Dev Up economic agency), emerging artists and graduate artists in the region (Bourges ENSA and Orléans ESAD art schools) to give their project/career an European scope.
Sharing experiences with other ECOCs will enable to build a range of services to make the European City of Artists a major lever opening the CVL to European partnerships as designed from the outset. As a regional territory experienced and perceived as landlocked, the Centre-Val de Loire will become cross-border thanks to the cultural projects underway.
Targeted measures:
-Support Bourges2028
-Provide effective support for European cultural projects
-Provide financial support for local stakeholders wishing to innovate
-Mobilize regional tools to support associative employment in the cultural sector

The Development Plan of the City of Novi Sad 2023–2030 is the city’s key strategic framework for sustainable socio-economic growth. It is created with the aim of defining key development directions, corresponding priority goals, measures and mechanisms for their successful implementation, all for the purpose of achieving better conditions for the lives of citizens and visitors of Novi Sad.
Under Priority Objective 2 (Human Potential) two specific measures bring out the need to work with ECOC legacy. Measure 4.2.2 (Strengthening the capacity of cultural institutions) brings out the need to adopt necessary documents and definition of ECOC legacy, making it part of the Novi Sad cultural policy and Measure 4.2.3 (Enhancing international cultural cooperation) leverages the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) 2022 legacy to strengthen cultural-tourism synergies and sustain partnerships forged during the ECoC year.
The need for cooperation and civil sector participation in culture is also brought up in Measure 4.2.4 in the Development Plan (e.g. supporting projects in culture that connect wider spectrum of social actors).
With the help of competence and practices obtained during ECOC year and international experience gained form other ECOC regions it is possible to realize these plans.

The Chemnitz Cultural Strategy 2018 to 2030 promotes cultural integration on three levels: At the individual level, cultural interests of the citizenry are recognised and preserved. The aim is to make cultural activities accessible to all population groups in the city. At an urban level, the cultural strategy provides impetus for the development of guidelines for city-wide planning and social issues relating to urban development. At a European level, the cultural strategy aims to anchor the city of Chemnitz in the supra-regional and international cultural landscape.
The cultural strategy also focuses on facilitating access to culture. It aims to optimise the exchange between stakeholders and create a communicative network. Cultural professionals are to be further trained and professionalised.

The strategy covers six thematic areas, including overarching actions and concepts
- Modernity in Chemnitz
- Make space! Create conditions, develop funding models
- IndustryCulture
- Cultural and creative industries as a driving force
- Cultural education
- Cultural communication, cultural marketing and international co-operation

TOP Plus is Hungary's territorial operational programme for 2021-2027, covering the entire country and supporting the development of both less developed regions and Budapest. It primarily focuses on small-scale developments led by local governments, structured around six priorities.

‘Priority 1: Liveable County’ aims to improve social, cultural, sports, and leisure spaces, smart city initiatives, and social urban regeneration. ‘Priority 6: Competitive County’ focuses on local economic growth and employment through infrastructure development, regional transport, tourism, spa-related services, and investments in active and eco-tourism.

While culture and creative industries align with these goals, they often feel excluded due to administrative, professional, economic, and communication challenges. Complex application processes with tight deadlines hinder SMEs, which lack grant specialists or funds for proposal writers. Additionally, information flow is inadequate, with insufficiently targeted communication leaving many unaware of opportunities.

The programme’s objectives often fail to meet the specific needs of creative industries, such as innovation and design-focused goals, and funding frameworks are inflexible, rarely supporting project-based approaches. Furthermore, limited platforms restrict local, regional, or international partnerships among creative industry actors, hampering collaboration and network-building.

The Alentejo Regional Programme 2021-2027 is the primary policy instrument, channeling EU funds through sub-regional strategies like the EIDT. The EIDT, funded under the Programme’s Priority 5 (“Territorial Cohesion”), mobilizes €93.3M via ITI CIMAC to address low density and climate resilience. It explicitly supports Évora’s ECoC 2027 as a catalyst for territorial cohesion, targeting:
- Cultural infrastructure: Rehabilitation of heritage sites (e.g., Convento da Saudação) and rural creative hubs.
- Capacity-building: Training programs for cultural/creative SMEs, linked to the Regional Smart Specialization Strategy (EREI).
- Inclusion: Community-led cultural projects in marginalized areas.
The EIDT’s vision – “environmentally sustainable, socially balanced development” – is operationalized through ECoC-aligned investments in the ITI Action Plan (e.g., €28.7M under Priority 5.1 for cultural tourism). This direct linkage ensures ECoC outcomes are institutionalized within the Alentejo Programme’s framework, enabling cross-municipal collaboration and resource pooling.