Maribor

With a population of more than 110,000 inhabitants, Maribor is the second-largest city in the Republic of Slovenia and is situated in Styria, in the north-eastern part of the country. This university and metropolitan city is the economic, financial, administrative, cultural, educational, trade and tourist center of north-east Slovenia. It is only 18 km away from the Austrian border, and for centuries has been an important junction between the north and the south, as well as between Eastern and Western Europe. The city is located by the Drava River and in its center grows the oldest – over 450 years old – vine in the world.

Maribor has a rich industrial tradition and a firm base of intellectuals, industrial workers and engineers. The main industries include the automotive industry, machine and metalworking industry, chemical and pharmaceutical industry, electrical engineering industry and wood processing industry. Maribor is also known as the educational center of the eastern region. The University of Maribor is the second-largest and the second oldest University in Slovenia. The University's objectives include: discovering, preserving and transferring knowledge, social studies, engineering, economics, medicine, natural sciences, law, pedagogical sciences and art, and making this knowledge accessible to society at large. Services and industry are the main sources of income for the city. In recent years, trade (due to new shopping centers) and the banking and financial sector have developed significantly. Also, tourism is increasingly important.

Maribor is the first Slovenian municipality with an approved circular economy strategy. The basic idea of the Strategy for the transition of the City of Maribor to the circular economy is its innovative model as a system for managing all the resources available in the Municipality of Maribor and the wider urban area.

ln 2012, Maribor was awarded the titles European Capital of Culture and European Rafter City, -in 2013 the European Youth Capital, -and in 2018 Maribor was the European Capital of Sport.