Edinburgh has been named as the first international City of Literature by the United Nations? Education Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The designation is a boost for Scotland?s tourist industry and will now be used to attract literary events such as the Booker Prize and the Nobel Prize for Literature to the city.
A spokeswoman for Edinburgh and Lothian?s Tourist Board said, ?The accolade will be used, I am sure, by many different bodies to raise the profile of the city.? More than 200,000 people visited the city?s International Book Festival this summer, its 21st birthday year. Catherine Lockerbie, Festival Director, said, ?The whole City of Literature idea came about partly as a desire to build on the outstanding success of the Edinburgh International Book Festival ? the world?s biggest book festival ? and utilise some of that spirit and energy throughout the rest of the year.? As part of the UNESCO designation, Edinburgh will become the inaugural member of the Creative Cities Network, a new programme designed to harness the creative potential of cities around the world in the fields of literature, cinema, music, folk art, design, information technology/media arts and gastronomy. The Creative Cities programme will promote the social and economic development of cities by emphasising the role of creativity and the arts within communities.