City Bologna, Italy

A city full of history...

The city of Bologna, the capital of the Emilia Romagna region, is located in a strategic position in the heart of Italy, midway between Milan and Florence. Situated on the edge of the Po Plain at the foot of the Apennine Mountains, the metropolitan area includes 60 Municipalities and has an overall population of almost 1 million inhabitants; about 385,000 of them live within Bologna’s municipal boundaries.

Every part of the city is full of history. Its well–preserved historical city centre is among the largest in Europe. The 40 kilometres of “porticoes” (the arcades) as well as the red bricks of its buildings make Bologna unique. The medieval towers are a hallmark of Bologna, especially the Two Towers, a symbol of the city.

Bologna is one of the most important business cities in Northern Italy. The main reason is that Bologna is a crossroads of goods and people: it is the main rail and highway junction in the country and has a fast-growing international airport (6.1 million passengers in 2013). Its Trade Fair District is among the most important in Italy, hosting 27 trade shows, 16,127 exhibitors, and almost 1 million visitors every year.

Traditional manufacturing industries in the area are: packaging, motor, electronics, fashion, and agro-food. Emerging sectors are: logistics, health and biomedical production, and creative industries. Thanks to an ideal mix of excellence in culture and technology, the city offers a quality of life among the highest in Italy.

... and culture

The city offers a rich and varied cultural scene, thanks to local institutions and to a multitude of associations that work with them.

• The University of Bologna is the world’s oldest university. Established in 1088, it now has around 84,000 students.
• Bologna was designated European City of Culture of the year 2000 by the European Union
• Thanks to its intense music production, its historical institutions, the tradition and the hundreds of associations which deal with music, Bologna was named by UNESCO “Creative City for Music” in 2006.
• The city boasts 40 Civic Museums and 1 National Gallery
• “Cineteca di Bologna”, the municipal film archives are world-famous for movie restoration and for keeping the Charlie Chaplin archives.
• The city is home to the Amilcar Cabral Centre which aims at deepening the knowledge on the history, politics, economics, religions, and cultures of the countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
• The central multimedia library “Sala Borsa” (former Stock-Exchange), located in the heart of the city, includes a large inner court with a glass pavement allowing the visitor to see the underground Roman ruins.
• Every year, the City of Bologna promotes “Bologna Estate”, a summer cultural programme lasting 3 months. Concerts, theatre plays, guided tours, projections, meetings and readings animate the squares, courtyards, cloisters and parks of the city centre and the suburbs to entertain city-dwellers and visiting tourists.

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