The 7 sites that made the list this year are:
Zogu Bridge, ALBANIA
Récollets Convent, Nivelles, BELGIUM
Garden City La Butte Rouge, near Paris, FRANCE
Historic Centre of Stolberg, GERMANY
Neptune Baths, Băile Herculane, ROMANIA
Orléans-Borbón Palace, near Cádiz, SPAIN
Crèvecoeur Fortress, Den Bosch, THE NETHERLANDS
The sites were announced at an online event held by Europa Nostra and the European Investment Bank Institute. 12 sites were originally suggested, but the final 7 were selected based on certain criteria. The panel of international experts was looking for sites that not only had strong heritage significance, but could also encourage community engagement and dialogue:
“Europe’s cultural heritage must be preserved not only as a testimony of our shared past, memory and identity, but also as a catalyst for sustainable development, social cohesion and much-needed peaceful co-existence” said Europa Nostra’s president Prof. Dr. Hermann Parzinger at the announcement.
Each of the 7 sites on the list will be given a €10,000 grant. This money can go towards activities at the site to raise awareness, rather than trying to fund direct intervention. Often, the listing and the grant money acts as a catalyst to gather public support and long-term funding.
The event however recognised that the danger to these sites was lessener in comparison to the conflict in Ukraine currently:
“…the rich and diverse heritage in Ukraine is THE most endangered heritage in the whole of Europe.” said Europa Nostra’s Secretary General, Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović in a statement at the event. Europa Nostra is currently running a fund for Ukraine.
Find out more about the 7 Most Endangered Programme at Europa Nostra, or check out which sites were listed in 2021.