Jury members at meeting in Brussels
The Jury of the 7th European Greenways Award was made up of experts whose professional background allowed them to approach, from a range of perspectives, the analysis of more than 20 exceptional candidates from 9 different countries.
- M. Pedro Ortún. Principal advisor, DG GROW, European Commission.
- Mr. Frederic Razee. Expert RAVeL – Mobilité douce. Cabinet du Vice-Président du Gouvernement Wallon et Ministre des Travaux Publics, de la Santé, de l’Action Sociale et du Patrimoine
- Mr. Andreas Versmann. European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)/NAT section (Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment.
- Mr. Bartlomiej Jesionkiewicz. Technical and Policy Adviser of EIM EIM aisbl (European Rail Infrastructure Managers)
- Mr. Hildebrand P.G. de Boer. Programme Director of European Route of Industrial Heritage (ERIH e.V.).
- Ms. Iulia Niculica. Administration and Institutional Affairs Project Manager, European Travel Commission (ETC)
- M. Gilbert Perrin – President EGWA. (Vote, in case of a tie vote)
Jury was assisted technically by the EGWA representatives (with voice but without vote) Ms. Carmen Aycart, General Secretary and Ms. Mercedes Muñoz, Director and Jury Secretary.
As laid down in the award regulations, the jury set out to select 3 awards for the categories Excellence and Exemplary Initiatives and 1 special award for “Best outdoor Tourism product for greenways”; this last one co-financed by COSME Programme 2014.
The 7th European Greenways Award has been organized by the European Greenways Association (EGWA) in cooperation with the Wallonnie, as part of the celebration of the 20th anniversary of RAVEL. The winners will be announced at Namur 16th October 2015.
The winners will be announced at Namur (Belgium) on Friday October the 16th 2015
The awards contributes to the promotion of best practices in greenways, to encourage the qualitative development of these new facilities open to the general public in Europe, that are “Communication routes reserved exclusively for non-motorised journeys. These routes should meet satisfactory standards of width, gradient, and surface condition to ensure that they are both user-friendly and low-risk for users of all abilities. In this respect, canal towpaths and disused railway lines are a highly suitable resource for the development of greenways. Greenways are known with different names depending on the country: Voies Vertes, Vias Verdes, RAVEL, Ecopistas, Radwege auf alten Bahntrassen, railtrails.