On the 22nd of February 2011
Rapla joined the network of European Cities of Culture
Rapla became the twentieth member of the network ‘European Cultural Cities in Estonia’ at a formal ceremony held at the Tallinn Town Hall.
The Estonia-wide network of cultural towns was founded on the 15th of May 2009 (on the Day of Tallinn) when nine towns answered the call made by the future Capital of Culture, Tallinn, for cultural co-operation. Ten more local governments followed, both towns and boroughs. The current members of the association ‘European Cultural Cities in Estonia’ are Elva, Haapsalu, Jõhvi, Narva, Narva-Jõesuu, Otepää, Paide, Põlva, Pärnu, Rakvere, Sillamäe, Suure-Jaani, Tallinn, Tartu, Tõrva, Türi, Valga, Viljandi and Võru.
Rapla became the twentieth member of the network while Kohtla-Järve also expressed the wish to join.
The cultural network has caught the attention of the Committee of the Regions of the European Union as has the proposal made by the initiator of the network, the Chairman of the City Council of Tallinn, Toomas Vitsut to involve all European Capitals of Culture since 1985 in similar co-operation.