Under the theme “More Responsibilities…More Capacities”, the 17th European Meeting of the European Network of Places of Peace (ENPP) took place between October 8th and 11th in the city of Trencin (Slovakia), more specifically at Trencin Castle, the site where the Treaty of Peace of Trencin was signed in 1335. This meeting included the 17th General Assembly of the Association and the General Election Assembly, both held on October 9th.
The Opening Session, which began at 10:00 am on October 9th and was chaired by José Daniel Sadio, Mayor of Estremoz and Chaiman of the General Assembly of ENPP, was attended by representatives from various prestigious institutions in Trencin, namely Tomáš Vaňo and Dominik Antal, representing the Self-Government of the Trencin Region, Patrik Žák, Vice-President of the Trencin City Council, Martin Šrámka, Pro-Rector of the Alexander Dubček University of Trencin, Peter Martinisko and Tomáš Michalík, respectively, Director and Deputy Director of the Trencin Museum, and Martin Mojžiš, from the Trencin Creative Institute.
During this session, speeches were given by Janka Fabová, Director of the “Trencin-European City” Association, a member of ENPP and host partner of this meeting; Eduardo Basso, President of ENPP; and Tomáš Vaňo, who, on behalf of the Trencin Region, thanked ENPP for its role in awarding the European Heritage Label to the region’s most important monument – Trencin Castle. During the Assembly, a presentation of the “Trencin – European Capital of Culture 2026” program was also given by Martin Mojžiš, Director for the European Dimension and International Relations.
Following the Opening Session, delegates from the ENPP members and representatives of invited entities proceeded to the main entrance of Trencin Castle, where the inauguration ceremony of the plaque commemorating the awarding of the European Heritage Label to Trencin Castle took place. This designation was part of the application for the Transnational Site Places of Peace, whose approval by the European Commission was announced last February. The plaque was unveiled by Janka Fabová, director of the Civic Association “Trencin-European City”, Peter Martinisko, Director of the Trencin Museum, the managing entity of Trencin Castle, and Eduardo Basso, President of the European Network of Places of Peace.
The General Assembly discussed the 2025/2026 Board Report, the implementation of the management of the EHL transnational site “Places of Peace”, the management and budget of the Places of Peace Route, and unanimously approved the Activity Plan and Budget for 2027 proposed by the Board, as well as an amendment to Article 15 of the Association’s Statutes.
Also unanimously, the General Assembly approved a proposal from the President of the Board for Anita Grzan-Martinovic, representative of the Municipality of Zadar on the Association’s board since 2014 and who will soon retire, to be accepted as an Associate Member of the ENPP.
After the Ordinary Assembly was closed, the Electoral General Assembly was opened under the direction of the President of the General Assembly of the Association, José Daniel Sadio, for the election of the Governing Bodies of the European Network of Places of Peace for the period 2026/2030.
The list presented by the President of the Board was unanimously approved. The new Board of Directors consists of Eduardo Basso (Portugal) as President, Maria João Carvalho (Portugal) as Vice-President, Lidia Stoichici (Romania) as Treasurer, Ivana Dadic (Croatia) as Secretary, Olav Praescht (Germany) as Voting Member, and Janka Fabová (Slovakia) as Alternate Member. The Municipality of Estremoz (Portugal) remains President of the General Assembly, and the Municipality of Kaynardzha (Bulgaria) was elected President of the Statutory Audit Committee.
The 17th European Meeting of ENPP was organized by the host member, the Civic Association “Trencin-European City,” and had the institutional support of the Trencin Region and the Trencin Museum.
