The first half of 2022 marks the arrival of France to the presidency of the Council of the European Union. It succeeds Slovenia and will give way to the Czech Republic, from July 1, as part of the rotating presidency between the 27 member states.
In addition to the institutional meetings planned in Brussels and Luxembourg, nearly 400 events will be held throughout France. Objectives: to make the action of the European Union known to citizens, but also to discover the extent and richness of the cultural and architectural heritage of the host country.
Angers is mobilizing for the occasion by hosting highlights. After a dematerialized meeting of filmmakers, organized by the National Cinema Center as part of the Premiers Plans festival, an informal meeting of the Ministers of Culture of the member countries will take place on March 7 and 8, at the invitation of Roselyne Bachelot.
France-Portugal Cultural Year and Forum for Gender Equality
In the wake of these meetings, the “Equality Forum – for gender equality in Europe” will be held on March 9 and 10, organized by the Institut français as part of the France-Portugal season. The inauguration evening will take place on March 8, in the presence of Roselyne Bachelot, Minister of Culture, and her Portuguese counterpart Graça Fonseca, and will pay tribute to the “Tres Marias”, central figures of feminism in Portugal, through a series projections and literary and poetic interventions. The forum will then bring together Portuguese, French and European speakers, political figures and members of civil society, for two days open to the public to exchange experiences, debates and concrete proposals. The theme of gender equality will be the subject at the same time of an open-air exhibition, “Cartooning for women”, with hangings in the city of press cartoons from around the world, and in particular by French authors. and Portuguese.
Portuguese culture will also be honored in May during the “Angers celebrates Europe” event, which will also celebrate the 40th anniversary of the twinning with Pisa. A ceremony will also take place on May 9, for Europe Day, around the fragment of the Berlin Wall on the esplanade of the multiplex cinema, where an explanatory lectern on the history of the Wall will be installed.
Also to be discovered as part of the French presidency of the European Union: the Pascal Dusapin exhibition at the abbey of Ronceray, visible from March 2.
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