The environmental impacts of hosting the “2012 Guimarães European Capital of Culture” as perceived by the local community*

This paper presents the results of an evaluation of the perceptions of the environmental impacts of the 2012 European Capital of Culture (ECOC) on the hosting community of Guimaraes, a World Heritage Site. Data was obtained through a self-administered survey of 510 residents in the Guimaraes municipality at the end of 2011. The primary results indicate that the residents acknowledged that hosting the event brought benefits to the city, but it also had negative impacts. The impacts perceived by residents were classified as socio-cultural, economic and environmental. The negative environmental impacts were the most pronounced.