The President of the Government of the Azores, Carlos César, will meet the President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, in Brussels next Thursday.

The meeting, which will take place at the Berlaymont building at10:30 AM, local time, is integrated in the programme to launch the Azores as European Region of the Year 2010 in Brussels.

Carlos César will also participate at the closing of the Conference on “the Azores: An asset for Europe” (Açores: um trunfo para a Europa) to be held on Thursday afternoon, bringing together various participants- including Members of Parliament, senior officials and institutions, scholars, state representatives, regions, NGOs and other European entities – to discuss two main themes: “A Commitment for the Sustainability and Regional Development” (Um Compromisso para a Sustentabilidade e Desenvolvimento Regional) and “The Atlantic, an Ocean of Opportunities” (O Atlântico, um Oceano de Oportunidades).

Álamo Meneses, Regional Secretary for the Environment and the Sea, Katarina Mathernovà, Deputy Director-General of the Directorate-General for Regional Policy and Paulo Ferrão, coordinator of the MIT-Portugal Programme will be the speakers of the first session of the Conference which will focus on environmental issues. Graham Meadows, former Director-General of the European Commission, will be the moderator.

Furthermore, the Blue Panel of the Conference on “the Azores: An asset for Europe,” dedicated to themes related to the common fisheries policy, environmental preservation and marine research, will count upon the presence of the speakers Ernesto Peñas Lado, Head of the

 Directorate-General for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs of the European Commission, Tony Long, Director of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and Ricardo Serrão Santos, Director of the Department of Oceanography and Fisheries of the University of the Azores. This panel will be moderated by Tiago Pitta e Cunha, a member of Office of the Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

There will also be a space for debate, information and exchange of positions on the Azores, their current situation and on the involvement of the Region on issues of relevant interest in both panels of the event organised by the Government of the Azores.

Moreover, an underwater photography exhibition on the Azores by Nuno Sá titled as “Mar a Ocidente” will be open to the public at the same venue.

The President of the Regional Government, Carlos César, will make the formal closing speech of the works at 5:30 PM. Following the closing speech, a reception with the flavours of the Azores that will be prepared by the Tourism and Hotel School of Ponta Delgada will be offered to the participants. The group of traditional Azorean music “Musica Nostra” will perform at this event.

The launching of the “European Region of the Year” in Brussels is part of the major goal of the Government to benefit from this important award to promote the Azores externally, to the debate and disseminate the Azorean reality, the sustainable development process and the potential of the Azores, particularly in Brussels which is the heart of the European decision-making process.

This initiative also takes into account the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the new College of Commissioners and the newly elected Parliament with strengthened legislative powers, which will create more opportunities to promote the knowledge about the Azores among European institutions and decision-making centres.