Ten years of cultural development in Sibiu: The European cultural capital and beyond

This study presents the results of a ten year monitoring programme on cultural and tourism development in the city of Sibiu. Over the ten year research period the programme expanded to cover a wide range of data sources, including resident and visitor surveys, stakeholder interviews and secondary statistical data. The research started at a fairly low level with studies of single events in the cultural agenda of Sibiu. The programme was significantly expanded in 2007 thanks to the staging of the European Capital of Culture in the city. Support from the ECOC allowed the scale of the research to be increased. Since 2007 the Lucian Blaga University has continued to collect data using its own resources. This study is unique as it is probably the first long-term study of the cultural and tourism development of a city in a former Socialist country in Central and Eastern Europe. The data in the current report build on and extend the analysis provided in the earlier report “The Impact of the 2007 European Cultural Capital in Sibiu: A long term perspective”, published in 2010. This research includes a number of different elements: regular surveys of residents and visitors, analysis of tourism flows and other statistics, Interviews with stakeholders in the city, Data from the regular surveys carried out by ATLAS in other parts of Europe. This report provides a summary of some of the major findings of the research to date, mainly based on the resident and visitor surveys.cultural tourism, European Cultural Capital, Sibiu

2007 EUROPEAN CULTURAL CAPITAL IN SIBIU – PRELIMINARY FINDINGS CONCERNING THE IMPACT ON MAJOR STAKEHOLDERS

The surveys conducted in Sibiu to evaluate the long term effects of European Cultural Capital in Sibiu in 2007 were carried on during 2008 and 2009. Works are in progress. The preliminary findings concerning the impact on major stakeholders have focused on the main goals of the event: image of Sibiu, economic, social and cultural impact, results of renovation’s works, but they have also highlighted effects on local pride, implication of local authorities. As such a kind of research is carried on in Sibiu and for Romanian tourism for the first time, preliminary results might start an open debate about using such research methods in Romania as a suitable tool to evaluate the competitiveness of a major event.impact, image, renovation, pride, social impact, transformation, challenges

The Impact of the 2007 European Cultural Capital in Sibiu: A long term perspective

This study of the impact of the European Cultural Capital in Sibiu in 2007 is part of an ongoing programme of research initiated by the European Association for Tourism and Leisure Education (ATLAS) in 1999. This programme of research aims to examine the implementation and effects of this increasingly popular event throughout Europe. The European Capital of Culture staged in Sibiu during 2007 was a unique event. It was the first European Capital of Culture (ECOC) to be staged in one of the post-2004 EU accession countries, and it represented a major challenge in being staged just as Romania was joining the EU. The original evaluation report published in 2007 by ATLAS (Richards and Rotariu, 2007), indicated that the event programme had successfully met many of the short-term aims, attracting large numbers of visitors, increasing cultural participation and improving the image of the city in Romania and abroad. Measuring the other, often less tangible impacts of the event requires a longer-term monitoring strategy. ATLAS has therefore undertaken a continuous monitoring programme for the City of Sibiu over the past three years. This research includes a number of different elements:regular surveys of residents and visitors, analysis of tourism flows and other statistics, Interviews with stakeholders in the city, Data from the regular surveys carried out by ATLAS in other parts of Europe. This report provides a summary of some of the major findings of the research to date, mainly based on the resident and visitor surveys.European Cutural Capital; cultural tourism;

Reviewing the effects of World Expos: Pulsar events for the eventful city?

Expos, festivals and events have become increasingly important as tools of urban developmentin recent decades. The competitive drive to put cities on the global map has led many to adoptevent-based strategies, including the creation of ‘eventful cities’, ‘festival cities’ and ‘eventportfolios’. World Expos have taken on a particular significance as ‘pulsar events’ that canshape the host city through urban development, increased tourism and place branding. Eachhost city also uses the event in a different way, and gives it a unique flavour that tempers theeventual effects. This paper reviews the literature on World Expos and their effects, identifyingthemes including Place branding, Tourism flows, Resident attitudes and Architecture and urbandevelopment. It then analyses the experience of Barcelona, twofold Expo host and a‘paradigmatic’ example of a city developed through mega events