24/09/2020 (Agence Europe) – The European Commission announced on Thursday 24 September that it has awarded the title of 2020 European capital of innovation (see EUROPE 12543/9) to the Belgian city of Leuven, “in recognition of its excellent innovation concepts, as well as its processes and governance models that enable ideas come to life”. One million euros funded by the European research programme Horizon 2020 will be given to the city. The other five finalists – Cluj-Napoca (Romania), Espoo (Finland), Helsingborg (Sweden), Valencia (Spain) and Vienna (Austria) – will each receive €100,000 each “to promote and scale up their innovation practices”, the Commission stresses. Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation and Youth, praised the “vibrant innovation ecosystems” of the six winning cities, calling them an “inspiration to all European cities”. (AC)