Host: HERITΛGE (Heritage Management Organisation)

Event Date: Friday, September 22nd, 12:00

Location: online

Overview:

Our team had the privilege of attending a mini-conference hosted by HERITΛGE on September 22nd, as part of the European Heritage Days celebration. The conference, conducted primarily in Greek, centred on the vital role of local communities in preserving and promoting living cultural heritage.

Several inspiring initiatives were showcased, with some familiar to us and others newly discovered,  demonstrating how communities serve as models for safeguarding cultural heritage.

We consider the ongoing discourse about and with the communities really significant as it lies at the heart of safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage and shifts the attention to from the “object” of tradition to its living, embodied “subjects”.

Communities are not just bearers but also active agents of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity under the UNESCO 2003 Convention. This acknowledgment underscores their pivotal role in safeguarding and transmitting cultural practices across generation.

This report reflects the experience of our team members who attended the HERITΛGE mini-conference.