Nantes is an Atlantic port city on the estuary of the river Loire. Over the last 20 years, Nantes has been one of the top 3 cities in France in terms of cultural, economic and demographic development.
With over 650,000 inhabitants, Nantes Métropole is the sixth largest metropolitan area in France. With Nantes at the heart of the metropolis, Nantes Métropole is not only a city with fast growing population – the city has the third largest population growth in France – it’s also one of the youngest French metropolitan areas with two-thirds of the population being under the age of 40.
Nantes is also the leading economic area in Western France with 25,100 companies and 275,000 jobs. This stems from both traditional sectors, like naval and aeronautic construction, agri-foods and service, and from innovative sectors, such as composites, health, biotechnologies, ICTs, creative and cultural industries.
Thanks to its cultural liveliness, its natural environment and its policies to encourage social cohesion, Nantes Métropole strives to achieve a high quality of life for every citizen.
The birthplace of Jules Verne is still today a centre of imagination and creativity. The Île de Nantes, an island in the city centre surrounded by the Loire River, has been transformed from a virtual no-go area into a cultural hub. Here you can find the famous steampunk animals Machines de l’île inspired by Jules Verne, including the famous Elephant, that is now the symbol of Nantes. The Île de Nantes is also home to the creative cluster Quartier de la Création, the future Heron Tree and the Extraordinary Garden.
An active political partner in international climate negotiations, Nantes has a long history of botanical gardens and public parks. Being the Green Capital in 2013 enhanced its aim to encourage all citizens to contribute to sustainability and climate actions. Nantes is structuring major transformation projects for the metropolitan core around the Loire. With some 100 parks, 250 km of waterways, 417 km of bicycle paths, Nantes is reinventing the city in a garden.
For Nantes, high quality accessible local public services, that facilitate citizens’ everyday life and foster their involvement in city life, are essential to social cohesion. Nantes based its winning application to Icapital awards in 2019 on citizen dialogue and innovation by and for all.
