10/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - The seven Grand Prize winners of the 2009 European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards were announced ton Friday 5 June. An additional 21 Awards were also granted during the official European Heritage Awards Ceremony in the Teatro Antico in Taormina, Sicily (Italy). The Grand Prizes, each worth €10,000, went to projects in Finland, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. In his message Mr Ján Figel', the European Commissioner responsible for Education, Training, Culture and Youth, underlined that the chosen projects and people involved in them “show that heritage is not simply about restoring and conserving things from our past, it is also about actively bringing our common heritage into the present and making it a part of our daily lives”. The Commission announced the 28 projects selected to take part in the Grand Prize on 14 May (see EUROPE 9902). (I.L./tranls.rt)