The format of the European Capital of Culture was created as early as 1983 by Melina Mercouri (later Greek Minister of Culture), who felt that culture was not given enough attention at the time. She believed that culture was the right means not only to open a dialogue on important topics, to connect individual nations and cultures, but also a tool to pump up the economy or promote diversity. The European City of Culture program began in the summer of 1985, with Athens being the first title holder. During the German Presidency in 1999, the European City of Culture program was renamed the European Capital of Culture and this name has remained to this day.

TRAKT is part of the Trencin candidate European Capitals of Culture 2026 project community, specifically artists Lukáš Matejka and Štefan Oliš. You can read more about the community at the following link.