Opening Event | © Photo: Manfred Vollmer

Have you ever been to a 30 mile long Autobahn picnic table, seen an opera in a steel mill or gone swimming in an old coking plant?

In 2010 all this is possible, as the Ruhr area is the center of European Culture! The city of Essen bears the title of European Capital of Culture as the representative of the 53 cities of the Ruhr with around 5.3 million residents. That makes the region the European Union’s third largest urban agglomeration behind Paris and London. The grand opening event brought RUHR.2010’s motto to the point: an impressive industrial setting for an artistic and musical tale of change through culture and culture through change. The Ruhr area, once the heart of Germany's mining and steel industries, is now a vibrant cultural centre. In 2010 there will be 300 projects with more than 2,500 events in the area.

This year's "Meetings of the Mind's" event took place at the Zeche Zollverein, followed by a concert at the Jahrhunderthalle, Bochum. To see photos, click here.

May 2009: Thirty-Three RISE students in the Ruhr area this summer

This summer the Ruhr area will host 33 of DAAD's RISE scholars (Research Internships in Science and Engineering), coming from across the USA, Canadan and UK. RISE students complete a hands-on research internship with Ruhr Area PhD students. For more information: www.daad.org