Helsinki Mayor Juhana Vartiainen is travelling this week to Romania to attend the largest yearly meeting of Eurocities, a network of large European cities, which is taking place ahead of the European Parliament elections. Conference discussions will focus on the joint European Union advocacy work of European cities. Mayor Vartiainen will speak at two sessions in the programme, one discussing democracy and populism and the other discussing the strategic priorities of Eurocities.
A meeting of the Eurocities Executive Committee will also be organised in connection with the conference. The Executive Committee includes twelve elected cities and their mayors and it leads the work of the network. Helsinki's term on the committee will continue until the summer of 2026.
The network’s cooperation fosters the member cities’ effective monitoring and influencing of EU issues as well as their anticipation of coming EU initiatives. Advocacy work through Eurocities has been strengthened further in the run up to the European Parliament elections, which will be held next week.
About the Eurocities network and its Executive Committee
Founded in 1986, Eurocities is a recognised network of European cities that promotes the economic, societal and social development of its member cities through cooperation and information sharing. Eurocities also jointly influences urban policy at the EU level. Eurocities is a network of more than 200 member cities in 38 countries, representing 130 million European inhabitants. Helsinki has been a member of Eurocities since 1994.
Eurocities Executive Committee members provide the organisation with political guidance and engage in advocacy work with EU institutions and key European and national stakeholders. The members also represent the network in interactions with EU institutions and strengthen the cities’ position in relation to them.