UNESCO Cities of Literature celebrate World Poetry Day

Up to 19 UNESCO Cities of Literature will organise different activities to commemorate World Poetry Day on 21 March. It aims to be a day in which poetry reaches around the world and in which the Cities of Literature contribute to raising awareness of the power of literature, and in this case more specifically of poetry, to build sustainable and inclusive societies.

Granada will lead the activity, in a year in which it celebrates its 10th anniversary as a UNESCO City of Literature. The chosen motto is “the dawn of the poetic spring”, and the Andalusian city will host from institutional events to recitals by 80 poets, from 5 to 9 p.m., in one of the faculties of the University of Granada and in 14 bookshops. In addition, there will be the special participation of the poet from Nanjing – also a UNESCO City of Literature – Yu Bang. There will also be a long-lasting Poetry Slam, in which five poets will compete to win the public’s vote.

Dunedin, Edinburgh, Heidelberg, Iasi, Iowa, Kraków, Kuhmo, Manchester, Melbourne, Milan, Nanjing, Norwich, Nottingham, Quebec, Seattle, Tartu, Tukums and Wroclaw are the other 18 cities of the UNESCO Cities of Literature network that will also organise special events on the occasion of World Poetry Day. For more information, click this link.