The Czech Presidency of the EU and European Commission launched the European Year of Creativity and Innovation 2009 on Wednesday, 7 January with the slogan “Imagine. Create. Innovate”.

The European Year begins against the backdrop of the current economic crisis, and many speakers underlined that boosting creativity and innovation is part of the solution. ”We do not know how long this crisis will last and how deep it will become. But when it is over, those who will have invested in creativity and innovation will find themselves well ahead of the pack," the European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth, Ján Figel', said in his address.

These eminent personalities adopted a set of recommendations for EU governments and institutions which were presented by Mr Aho at the afternoon conference. These are available on the dedicated website of the Year.

The European Year of Innovation and Creativity (EYCI) 2009, proposed by the European Parliament and the Council in march 2008, aims to raise awareness of the importance of creativity and innovation as key competences for personal, social and economic development. Its objectives have acquired a special meaning in the context of the current economic slowdown, as the message it should convey is that Europe should not react to the crisis by reducing investment into skills and innovation. By emphasizing these priorities, the EU aims at shaping Europe's future in a global competition by fostering the creative and innovative potential in all of us. The Year is conceived as a horizontal, cross-cutting exercise involving many areas. Apart from education and culture, it involves enterprise, regional and research policies, energy, transport, environment and the information society.

The EU will offer a framework for raising awareness of the issues concerned and promoting a policy debate on how to increase Europe's creative and innovative potential. As was the case in previous European Years, the activities will include promotion campaigns, events and initiatives at European, national, regional and local levels. Already in the first days of 2009 it has attracted a lot of interest from the Member States, regions, companies, artistic circles and civil society.