In 2019, the city of Bodø was awarded European Capital of Culture (ECoC) status for 2024. Bodø2024 is the biggest cultural project that has been undertaken in Norway for several years. In 2024, over 600 different events are being held in the county of Nordland. The project aims to reach over 500,000 visitors, strengthen the cultural life in Bodø and Nordland and contribute to increased well-being and life satisfaction.
The European Commission requires the organizer of the capital of culture (Bodø2024 IKS) to carry out an evaluation of the project. Bodø2024 has therefore entered into an agreement with Nord University regarding the evaluation of Bodø as a capital of culture. This evaluation will be carried out by a group of researchers connected to the Nord University Business School, in the project «Monitor2024 – Effects of Bodø as European Capital of Culture«
In the evaluation, we will describe and explain both short-term and long-term effects of Bodø2024. The evaluation is based on the European Commission’s framework and will entail the use of several different data sources and methods to map changes in Bodø and Nordland. This will allow us to examine whether the goals for the capital of culture project, set out in the framework by the European Commission (2018), are being achieved. We will also investigate whether Bodø2024 leads to changes in cultural life and whether this has positive effects for the population, as well as urban and regional development.
