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| Galicica park |
A Regional Course is taking place in the Lake Ohrid region between 4 and 13
October 2016. This Course on Promoting People-Centred Approaches aims at
providing heritage practitioners with the necessary tools to engaging
communities in the conservation of natural and cultural heritage.
The course is
organized in the framework of the project “Towards strengthened governance of
the shared transboundary natural and cultural heritage of the Lake Ohrid
region”.
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| At Ministry of Culture |
The two first days it was the Albania’s Ministry of Culture who welcomed
20 participants from seven southeast Europe countries who are meeting for the
first time to discuss how communities are contributing to heritage – and how
they can benefit from it. This marked the opening session of the second
People-Centred Approaches course organized by ICCROM. This short course is
primarily aimed at heritage practitioners, providing them with the necessary
knowledge and tools to work more effectively with stakeholder communities.
Engaging communities in conservation and management processes is intended to
strengthen their ability to participate meaningfully in the process of making
decisions for themselves and their heritage.
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| Museum of Struga |
The third day participants of this course moved to the Museum of Struga,
where they explored the community engagement and the links of nature and
culture. The museum offers a snapshot in time of the unique flora and fauna in
and around the Lake Ohrid in an authentic setting from 1928.
The fourth
day the participants continues their course in Ohrid City, which was the
location to discover and discuss the benefits and limits of traditional
knowledge systems for heritage management. Young masters of century-old crafts
such as filigree and pearl making showed their passion in guarding – and
sharing – their heritage.
The mixed natural and cultural heritage of the Ohrid Region is particularly
appropriate for advancing people-centred approaches. Issues regarding the
conservation and management of both the cultural and natural aspects of the
area demonstrate a paradigm shift towards a more holistic approach which
emphasizes the wellbeing of a place and its people. For this reason, PCA
participants have been selected from both the natural and cultural heritage
sectors.
They will be working together for ten days, delivering results
of their work in a public presentation on 12 October 1016.
Partners in the implementation of this course are: ICCROM, IUCN, ICOMOS,
UNESCO World Heritage Centre
