SKIVRE – Skills Development for the Valorisation of European Religious Heritage Erasmus Project

Project Title

SKIVRE – Skills Development for the Valorisation of European Religious Heritage

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Rural development and urbanisation; Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education; Cultural heritage/European Year of Cultural Heritage

Project Summary

The SKIVRE partnership developed a multi-modular training scheme for manufacturing and marketing high-quality handcrafted products of European monasteries. Monastic heritage represents an important part of European heritage, shared by all EU countries mainly in their rural areas. Monasteries served not only the transmission of the Christian faith but were economic hotspots for the exchange of goods and services. Today, there are different “business models“ for monasteries: some are still organised and led by their Orders with a focus on ecclesiastical duties. The majority is either profaned or (co)financed by public authorities on a regional level and located in rural areas.

Monasteries link cultural heritage to the economy: They employ administrative, technical, and managing staff, pay taxes and social costs. There is regular staff for maintaining the buildings, opening them for visitors and producing products for selling on the premises. The manufacturing of monastic products is an enormous economic chance for many monasteries to gain income for their preservation efforts as well as for creating employment for local actors, specifically in rural areas. They contribute to the tourism industry and economy. The production of monastic products (e.g. handcrafted personal care products (soaps, lotions), textiles, food (bread, marmalade, liquors, beer, wine, religious gadgets) is, therefore, a mean for income and a contribution to preserving heritage. Without the production of these products, monasteries could not survive.

The knowledge of manufacturing these products is part of the intangible cultural EU heritage. The SKIVRE training material

– improves the level of skills for the development and marketing of monastic products, with particular regard to their relevance for the labor market in rural areas,
– generates employment opportunities for citizens in rural areas,
– offers European cooperation in product development, design, and sales,
– provides knowledge in establishing monastic products in distribution strategies in EU markets,
– strengthens capacities to produce high quality, innovative and marketable products,
– offers practical and free training in a particular sensitive business,
– creates a business environment that accepts the dignity of sacred locations
– unlocks economic potential for authentic products of monasteries in a socially accepted way,
– raises awareness of historic arts and crafts for generating new businesses,
– uses digital instruments in the training and marketing of monastic products.

The SKIVRE partnership comprised a multidisciplinary European team that represented the target groups and expertise needed for training development:

– Monasteries (active by Orders or operated by third parties like municipalities, county districts, foundations): Bronnbach monastery
– Local actors in close collaboration with monasteries like parishes, non-profit associations like “friends of the monastery”: Future for Religious Heritage / Belgium
– Training developers: media k / Germany, INI-Novation Bulgaria Ltd. / Bulgaria and Wissenschaftsinitiative Niederösterreich / Austria
– Digital training tools providers: GUnet / Greece.

The SKIVRE team implemented the following activities:

– Development of the SKIVRE multilingual modular training scheme for monastic products in manufacturing and marketing, including a testing phase and business development activities
– Development of the SKIVRE digital learning platform
– Creation of the SKIVRE Implementation Guidelines for professional production and marketing in shops or at special retailers
– Publication on historic crafts of monasteries and their potential for social entrepreneurship for citizens in rural areas.

SKIVRE focused on a most interactive training approach, which targets staff, nuns, and monks at monasteries in a committed and responsible way. All activities geared towards gaining relevant skills for raising revenues for the preservation of religious heritage sites.

Results, impact, and long-term benefits: SKIVRE closed a training gap at European monasteries working hard in the preservation of their sites. The training opens new markets and improves access to existing markets. Staff at monasteries can upscale knowledge and train for the employment market. European citizens get better access to high-quality monastic products with a background linked to their own heritage. SKIVRE established innovative training for employment specifically in rural areas, where most monasteries are located.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 242640,43 Eur

Project Coordinator

media k GmbH & Country: DE

Project Partners

• FUTURE FOR RELIGIOUS HERITAGE
• Kloster Bronnbach – Eigenbetrieb des Landratsamts Main-Tauber-Kreis
• INI-Novation Bulgaria OOD
• AKADIMAIKO DIADIKTYO
• Wissenschaftsinitiative Niederösterreich (WIN)