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1. The general objectives of the European Year shall be to encourage and support the efforts of the Union, the Member States and regional and local authorities, in cooperation with the cultural heritage sector and broader civil society, to protect, safeguard, reuse, enhance, valorise and promote Europe's cultural heritage. In particular, the European Year shall:

(a) contribute to promoting the role of Europe's cultural heritage as a pivotal component of cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue. While fully respecting the competences of the Member States, it shall highlight the best means to ensure the conservation and safeguarding of Europe's cultural heritage as well as the enjoyment thereof by a wider and more diversified audience, including through audience-development measures and heritage education, thereby promoting social inclusion and integration;

(b) enhance the contribution of Europe's cultural heritage to society and the economy, through its direct and indirect economic potential, which includes the capacity to underpin the cultural and creative sectors, including small and medium-sized enterprises, and to inspire creation and innovation, to promote sustainable development and tourism, to enhance social cohesion and to generate long-term employment;

(c) contribute to promoting cultural heritage as an important element of the relations between the Union and third countries, building on the interest and needs in partner countries and on Europe's expertise in cultural heritage.

2. The specific objectives of the European Year shall be to:

(a) encourage approaches to cultural heritage that are people-centred, inclusive, forward-looking, more integrated, sustainable and cross-sectoral;

(b) promote innovative models of participatory governance and management of cultural heritage, involving all stakeholders, including public authorities, the cultural heritage sector, private actors and civil society organisations;

(c) promote debate, research and the exchange of good practices on the quality of conservation, safeguarding, innovative reuse and enhancement of cultural heritage, and on contemporary interventions in the historical environment;

(d) promote solutions which make cultural heritage accessible to all, including via digital means, by removing social, cultural and physical barriers, taking into account people with special needs;

(e) highlight and enhance the positive contribution of cultural heritage to society and the economy through research and innovation, including by strengthening the evidence base for such a contribution at Union level;

(f) encourage synergies between cultural heritage and environment policies by integrating cultural heritage into environmental, architectural and planning policies, and by promoting energy-efficiency;

(g) encourage regional and local development strategies that tap into the potential of cultural heritage, including through the promotion of sustainable tourism;

(h) support the development of specialised skills and improve knowledge management and knowledge transfer in the cultural heritage sector, taking into account the implications of the digital shift;

(i) promote cultural heritage as a source of inspiration for contemporary creation and innovation, and highlight the potential for cross-fertilisation and stronger interaction between the cultural heritage sector and other cultural and creative sectors;

(j) raise awareness of the importance of Europe's cultural heritage through education and lifelong learning, in particular by focusing on children, young and elderly people, local communities and hard-to-reach groups;

(k) highlight the potential of cooperation in matters of cultural heritage for developing stronger ties within the Union and with countries outside the Union and for encouraging intercultural dialogue, post-conflict reconciliation and conflict prevention;

(l) promote research and innovation in relation to cultural heritage, facilitate the uptake and exploitation of research results by all stakeholders, in particular public authorities and the private sector, and facilitate the dissemination of research results to a broader audience;

(m) encourage synergies between the Union and the Member States, including by strengthening initiatives to prevent the illicit trafficking of cultural goods; and (n) highlight, during 2018, significant events that have a symbolic importance for Europe's history and cultural heritage.