An international delegation of design cities will descend on Dundee next month to discover the story behind the new V&A museum and Waterfront regeneration.
Dundee City Council leader John Alexander confirmed representatives from the 20 Unesco Cities of Design, which include the likes of Beijing, Buenos Aires, Bilbao, Turin and Berlin, will visit Dundee for at least three days from October 17.
It is seen as a major coup for the city, which had to beat off competition from two other prominent European locations to become the preferred destination.
Mr Alexander pitched Dundee during a fringe meeting of Unesco leaders and said there had been a huge level of support and interest in Dundee from other cities.
He said: “There was a real interest in coming to Dundee and seeing it first hand because they’ve heard so much, and the people within the Unesco network have done fantastic work in collaborating with them to help them understand our journey.
“The delegations will be a mixture of people with specific remits from local authorities that cover culture and creative industries. It may also include academics and possibly local politicians as well.
“It’s another great opportunity because they will take all that back, and the whole point of the network is to create those cultural links. It’s about bringing cities together to share knowledge, understanding and experience, and to learn from each other.
“With the V&A opening the month before and all the buzz that will be around the city, it’s a great time for them to come and for us to show off everything that is going on culturally in Dundee.”
The Courier revealed fresh details of an ambitious plan to put Dundee at the forefront of a first-of-its-kind global culture festival in summer 2022.
The six week Creative Cities World Festival, which would take place in the run up to the Edinburgh Fringe, would seek to attract visitors from all 180 cities across 72 countries in its Creative Cities network and become a showcase for each location.
Organisers hope it will “stimulate initiatives between cities, strengthen global cultural activities, and help develop hubs of creativity”.
