Capitalizing on Local Intangible Cultural Heritage around Europe Erasmus Project

Project Title

Capitalizing on Local Intangible Cultural Heritage around Europe

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage

Project Summary

CLICHE is the name of an Erasmus+ project that unites 7 European schools and other associated partners. For three years (2018 – 2021) the schools will work together capitalizing on their local intangible cultural heritage (ICH) for a positive sustainable development of our regions.
Immaterial or intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is as important as material cultural heritage but not that obvious at first sight. It refers to things you cannot see like living traditions, talents, skills, certain expertise and knowledge – as well as instruments, objects and cultural spaces associated with them. Another key issue is that ICH is transmitted from generation to generation and is constantly recreated by communities and groups in accordance with their environment, interaction with nature and their history, encouraging the development of cultural diversity and the exploitation of human creativity. Thus, ICH gives a region its identity and is deeply interconnected with the resulting way of life.
A well-known fact is that globalization has an impact for every EU citizen with implications at an economic, social and individual level. Cultural activities maintain, strengthen and support regional and local interests against globalizing effects and radiate, besides continuity and stability, a kind of genuine local spirit and general sense of security. Through our project, we want to make students and the wider community aware of what they can be proud of emphasizing
-the relevance of this capital for today, as an endogenous resource and an asset and
-the entrepreneurial dimension of the cultural and creative industries.
As a first step, students will research and inventory their local ICH by using a joint participatory wiki. It will provide a multilingual platform through which schools and the wider communities can highlight their local ICH, ranging from individual local phenomena to large-scale national elements and learn about the ICH of other communities or countries. Being confronted with other cultures and mindsets and understanding the difference between ‘ours’ and ‘theirs’ will help students and communities to make the raison d’être of their own cultural heritage visible.
But we will not stop there. By creating a vision and a mission statement concerning the safeguarding of ICH and after making a SWOT analysis considering our strengths and weaknesses, we intent to valorize this immaterial capital. Students using their talents creatively and mimicking the real world will think about state-of-the-art ideas, namely startups, apps or virtual enterprises to capitalize on the exploitation of their local ICH. Then they will make Ted Talks which will be available on You Tube, promoting it in the best possible way. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) packages will be created by teachers integrating the safeguarding of our heritage into school education. As the utilization of internet is indispensable, further digitization of ICH will be achieved through the creation of transmedia stories and make them known extensively.
With the organization of thematic workshops at schools and an international fair, we intent to gather useful and implementable knowledge from the project partners about the best practices for the safeguarding and capitalization of intangible cultural heritage, integrating several activities with a multidisciplinary approach: culture and traditions, sustainability, technology and social inclusion. Showcasing innovation based on local traditions can set a good example for all.
By disseminating the results of our project, we aspire to create a wide network. Networking can be an effective tool towards designing widely-recognized regional brand names making regions clearly discernible and identifiable. Key actors of this networking, apart from schools, are those bearing and updating the local intangible cultural heritage: families, communities, associations, entrepreneurs producing local products and services and other organisations on the field of regional management and development. Their cooperation could enhance the local people’s self-esteem and motivate the sense of responsibility by individuals.
This project will be largely led by pupils who will be upskilled in Presentation, Communication, Management, IT, Entrepreneurial, Problem Solving and Organization skills and learn how to solve real challenges. But we also intent to upskill Teachers who will share successful lessons and learn how to adapt resources to fit their own learning environment. We also want to engage the Community through inter-generational, intercultural sharing experiences and events. Students will share their new skills and gain additional skills by engaging in these events. Our vision is to provide students with an increased sense of initiative and understanding of how community involvement can be a driver for change, increase feeling of ownership and active participation which is also the basis of our sustainability plan.

Project Website

http://erasmuscliche.com

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 214115 Eur

Project Coordinator

1ST GENERAL LYCEUM OF LEVADIA & Country: EL

Project Partners

• Razlog Vocational High School ‘Nickola Stoychev’
• Srednja sola Crnomelj
• 3rd Gymnasium of Levadia
• Kedainiai Sviesioji Gymnasium
• ACROPOLIS LYCEUM
• Tallinna Tõnismäe Reaalkool