The Azores will welcome from August 20 to 25 over a dozen experts on the field of Cultural and Creative Industries.

Experts from various European regions and other partner regions will participate in the Summer University of the Assembly of European regions to be held in the Azores.

The official opening of the Summer University 2012 will take place on August 21. The event will be attended by the Regional Secretary for European Affairs and External Cooperation, Rodrigo Oliveira, and the President of the Assembly of European Regions, Michèle Sabban.

The initiative, organised under the theme "The Role of Creative Industries in the Promotion of Employment and Growth in European Regions," will gather 120 participants and several experts on Cultural and Creative Industries in the city of Ponta Delgada.

During one week, regional representatives, experts and youngsters will exchange views on topics related to Cultural and Creative Industries in an initiative that will include workshops, conferences and field trips.

Josianne Poirier, Francisca Abreu, Pilar Damião de Medeiros, Alexandra Lambert are some of the participants in this event.

Josianne Poirier is one of the speakers of the Summer University and represents one of the partner regions of the Assembly of European Regions: Montreal, Canada.  She is specialised in art history and her work is focused on the relationship between art, culture and urban space. The workshop presented by Josianne Poirier will address the theme "Governmental interventions in the area of culture and their effects on artistic communities, society and economy."

Francisca Abreu will participate as speaker on behalf of the European Capital of Culture 2012. She holds the position of councillor for Education and Culture of the Guimarães City Hall and she is president of the Board of "A Oficina," the cooperative responsible for the cultural management and programming of the Vila Flor Cultural Centre. "Culture and Public Authorities - the Role of Regions" will be the theme of her paper.

The "Access to culture and cultural goods in rural areas and in the Outermost Regions" will be the topic addressed the professor at the University of the Azores, Pilar Damião de Medeiros, who holds a specialisation on Sociology of Culture and Intercultural Studies.

In turn, Alexandra Lambert, a graduate in Economics and responsible for the "Brussels Fashion and Design Centre" will address the importance of creative industries in the job creation and regional economic development.

The main theme of the Summer University aims to combine the development of modern societies with knowledge, creativity, cultural, scientific and technological innovation, and entrepreneurship, always bearing in mind a global perspective.