The 2026 Europe Prize has been awarded by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to the city of Reggio Emilia in Italy. The Prize is awarded each year to the city that has been most active in promoting the European ideal.
Reggio Emilia is a city of 171,000 inhabitants located in northern Italy. Its twinning network comprises 12 cities and seven international agreements.
In 2025, the city took part in over 47 European projects, and more than 2,000 students participated in European training programmes, Erasmus+ experiences and mobility activities.
The Eurodesk Centre’s ‘Youth4Europe’ project won the 2025 Eurodesk Award for its innovative approach to integrating European citizenship into everyday life, transforming public spaces into venues for youth participation and debate.
The city has shown remarkable solidarity, notably by welcoming over 4,000 Ukrainian refugees, participating in the Conference on the Reconstruction of Ukraine, and facilitating youth exchanges between its schools and those of Melitopol.
The city is also a member of Eurotowns, a founding member of the Council of Europe’s Intercultural Cities Programme, and an active partner in the POLIS network, the Network of Cities Against the Death Penalty and Cities in Placemaking.
Created in 1955 by PACE, the Europe Prize is the highest distinction awarded to a European city for its actions in the European domain. In addition to the trophy, the winning city receives a grant to be used for a study visit to the European institutions for its young people.
Five other cities – Augsburg and Münster in Germany, Ostrów Wielkopolski in Poland, Mollet del Vallès in Spain and Vinnytsia in Ukraine – were shortlisted for the Prize, and the committee commended their candidacies.
In addition, the committee awarded four Plaques of Honour, six Flags of Honour and twelve European Diplomas, which also form part of the Europe Prize. See here for the full list.