UNESCO Cities of Literature

Ōtepoti is one of the world’s great small cities. Situated in Te Wai Pounamu, the South Island of Aotearoa, Ōtepoti has a population of approximately 130,000 people and is well known as a university town of excellence in research and learning, and a city where writers, books and literature thrive.

Ōtepoti became Aotearoa’s first UNESCO Creative City when it was awarded ‘City of Literature’ status in 2014. The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) is designed to develop international co-operation among cities and encourages partnerships that deliver on UNESCO’s global priorities of culture and sustainable development. There are seven different Creative City designations: design, film, folk art, gastronomy, literature, media arts and music.

UNESCO Cities of Literature work together to build strong global partnerships: encouraging literary exchanges, creating cross-cultural initiatives and developing local, national and international literary links. This permanent title formally recognises the fact that storytelling is central to Ōtepoti’s identity. 

Read all about the other UNESCO Cities of Literature here.

Vision for Dunedin UNESCO City of Literature

Dunedin will sustain a healthy, creative and prosperous city through celebrating and sharing a diverse and inclusive literature that connects people and place.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

PARTNERSHIPS

• To build strong creative partnerships locally, nationally and internationally, and in particular cultivate links with cultures and societies connected to New Zealand through the Creative Cities Network
• To encourage exchanges between current and future Cities of Literature and sister cities which enhance Dunedin’s literary wealth and that of all the participating cities
• To foster connections through creative writing, indigenous storytelling and translation

COLLABORATION

• To work collaboratively and creatively as a city, to take pride in our past, enrich our present and design for the future
• To establish meaningful and enduring collaborations which facilitate the production and distribution of New Zealand literature nationally and internationally with particular emphasis on new media industries and research organisations

SUSTAINABILITY

• To support, encourage and facilitate inclusive access to, and participation in creative educational opportunities, especially children and young adults, which meet the needs and unique challenges of the 21st century
• To encourage ongoing participation and support from Dunedin’s business community in all aspects of the Creative Cities initiative

INNOVATION

• To explore and develop new modes of creative collaboration, production and dissemination, particularly those that encourage a closer connection between people and place, and sustain community health and wellbeing
• To encourage children to imagine new communities of writing and reading that might script our common future

WITH THE ULTIMATE INTENTION OF SHARING AND HOSPITALITY

• Manaakitanga –welcoming people to New Zealand, its literature and people, and fostering respectful relationships

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Many thanks to the Otago Daily Times, University of Otago and Dunedin City Council for permission to use their great photography featured on this website.