COUNTY Durham is a wonderful place to live, work and visit.

Many of you will know that already but it is also easy to forget that the places locally where we have grown up, gone to school, worked and enjoyed a day out are very special indeed and deserve to be celebrated.

Durham County Council has launched an initiative, which the Echo heartily endorses, called “This is Durham, Place of Light”. It aims to promote the county locally, nationally and around the world, as a place filled with brilliant things.

The words “Durham” and “Light” immediately sparks thoughts of Lumiere, the UK’s largest light festival, which will return in November 2017 to illuminate Durham city centre with magical art installations and light shows that celebrate the area’s rich cultural heritage and showcase its innovative present.

But the Place of Light theme goes much further than that, highlighting science, art and technology as well as business, tourism, and the beauty of Durham’s stunning landscapes.

At the Netpark technology site beside Sedgefield, for example, firms such as Kromek and PolyPhotonix have found new ways to combat cancer and blindness, while Newton Aycliffe’s Hitachi factory is building sleek, new high speed trains, while Spennymoor's Thorn are world leaders in light technology.
Durham is a place where visitors can enjoy the ancient beauty of the Dales, explore the Heritage Coast, the iconic Cathedral and Castle World Heritage Site, or museums such as Killhope, Beamish and Bowes.

Last year the county attracted nearly 19 million visitors who helped to inject more than £777 million into the area’s economy. And new attractions such as the amazing Kynren; An Epic tale of England, at Auckland Castle are helping to give visitors even more reasons to sample Durham’s many delights.