The Universidad de La Laguna (ULL) signed a formal declaration of support for the bid by Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to become European Capital of Culture 2031. Rector Francisco Javier García and the Mayor of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Carolina Darias, signed an agreement through which the university joins the project. The city council considers the ULL’s participation a boost to the bid’s cultural, territorial and scientific dimensions.
According to the city council, the collaboration is intended to bring research, teaching and cultural programmes into closer alignment and to bring the Canary Islands’ distinctive perspective as an insular and Atlantic region into the European debate. The Universidad de La Laguna’s support is seen as helping extend the project beyond the city limits: the bid LPGC'31 aims, according to its organisers, to involve the entire archipelago and foster partnerships with other institutions.
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria’s bid is one of four Spanish cities that made the shortlist in the national selection process in March 2026; the Ministry of Culture, or the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Sport is coordinating the national selection process for the European Capital of Culture 2031. Neither side cited any specific financial commitments or project-related budget for the newly agreed cooperation with the ULL.
The city says that involving key academic institutions such as the Universidad de La Laguna will facilitate the development and evaluation of cultural policy programmes, engagement with younger audiences and cooperation with European universities. At this stage of the process, the bid is working on a second Bid Book, which must be submitted in November; a jury visit is then planned. It has not been documented whether, or to what extent, the new agreement will change the contents of the Bid Book.
The Universidad de La Laguna’s support joins a series of institutional commitments through which Las Palmas de Gran Canaria hopes to raise its profile in the selection process. No economic forecasts or visitor figures have been released so far, and these remain to be seen.
Editor: Celestina Fuentes (Article created with AI assistance).