The main season of European Heritage Days in Finland opens on Monday, 3rd September and continues until Sunday, 9th September.

Know your heritage, share your story is the European Heritage Days theme for 2018 in Finland. Celebrations are open to participants throughout the country. The European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018 has inspired an amazing number of activities. The key events will be held in Finland from 3rd to 9th September, but the theme has already been explored in hundreds of occasions this year. More than 500 events are to be held overall.

The 2018 theme has been celebrated in over 50 European countries. In August 2018, the EU Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Tibor Navracsics, predicted that the importance of cultural heritage for European social and economic development will only grow. A theme that encourages people to share their cultural heritage will strengthen European integration and support further the understanding and appreciation of diversity, especially in hard times. Because of this the Commissioner believes that cultural heritage will continue to play a key political role in Europe.

Hundreds of events celebrate the European Heritage Days focusing on our shared and individual heritage

Photo Source: European Heritage Days in Finland Brochure

In Finland, the theme of Know your heritage, share your story has taken the form of familial and community histories, the habits and traditions of different localities, and the cultural heritage of different age groups and communities - all of our stories are part of European cultural heritage.

There are walking and cycling tours in different cultural localities, cultural landscape events, local history exhibitions, storytelling collection events, and open house events in schools, community centres, and historic villas. These and many more can be found at: www.kulttuuriymparistopaivat.fi/tapahtumat

Finnish success in the European Heritage Makers Week

Photo: Pedersöretjejerna, European Heritage Makers Week Story

The Cultural Heritage Makers is a storytelling experience designed in Finland to inspire children and young people to explore and analyse their immediate surroundings and cultural heritage. In 2018, the project was extended to the whole of Europe by inviting all under 18-year-olds to participate this European Heritage Makers Week by sharing a photo and a story from their own immediate surroundings.

Among the ten European selected stories was 8-year-old Saga Koivistos story from Finland. Her selected project engaged with her locality in Jokiniemi in Vantaa, and its changes from prehistory to the modern day. 82 projects from all over Europe participated in the Week.

Cultural heritage is celebrated throughout Europe - at a local level

Every year over 20 million people from 50 countries take part in the European Heritage Days. The yearly theme is the same for all countries and in 2018 the whole of Europe is celebrating with the Art of Sharing.

The purpose of European Heritage Days is to draw attention to the importance of localities and their values, and to encourage people to see cultural heritage as a strength and as a source of wellbeing. The initiative for the European Heritage Days came from the Council of Europe and the European Commision. In Finland, European Heritage Days are organised by the Ministry of the Environment, the Finnish Local Heritage Federation, Finnish Heritage Agency, Finnish National Agency for Education, and the Association of Cultural Heritage Education in Finland. This year we have partnered with the Finnish Literature Society to collect stories about cultural heritage.

More information

www.kulttuuriymparistopaivat.fi 

Twitter: @HeritageDaysFI

Facebook: www.facebook.com/EHDFinland

Contacts

Jonina Vaahtolammi, European Heritage Days Coordinator, Finnish Local Heritage Federation, jonina.vaahtolammi@kotiseutuliitto.fi, tel. +358 9 612 63229

Hanna Hämäläinen, Planning Officer, Ministry of the Environment, hanna.hamalainen@ym.fi, tel. +358 295 250 095

International affairs: Liisa Lohtander, Organisation Manager, Finnish Local Heritage Federation, liisa.lohtander@kotiseutuliitto.fi, tel. +358 45 1509 109