Strasbourg (France) has been designated as the World Book Capital for 2024 by UNESCO.
Strasbourg was highly impressed by UNESCO and the World Book Capital Advisory Committee’s program ‘Reading for the Planet’, which emphasizes books to address social tensions and climate change. With a focus on young people as agents of change, it emphasizes books’ ability to encourage debate and discussion about environmental issues and scientific knowledge.
Additionally, Strasbourg was commended for its literary heritage and its activities that showcased many artistic disciplines, from music to theatre. Large-scale events that are outward-looking have long been organized by the city.
UNESCO World Book Capital cities promote books and reading for all ages and groups, within and across national borders, and organize annual activities.
As the twenty-fourth city to bear the title since 2001, Strasbourg follows Madrid (2001), Alexandria (2002), New Delhi (2003), Antwerp (2004), Montreal (2005), Turin (2006), Bogota (2007), Amsterdam (2008), Beirut (2009), Ljubljana (2010), Buenos Aires (2011), Erevan (2012), Bangkok (2013), Port Harcourt (2014), Incheon (2015), Wroclaw (2016), Conakry (2017), Athens (2018), Sharjah, (2019), Kuala Lumpur (2020), Tbilisi (2021), Guadalajara (2022) and Accra (2023).