Cultural Exchange

Cultural Exchange

‘Cultural Exchange’ is a cross-cutting project to be utilised by all the elements of Bassenthwaite Reflections. The project is designed to enable reciprocal visits for trainees, students and trainers/ teachers between the Bassenthwaite Lake catchment and any of the following 30 European states (in bold are where 2007 partnerships are in place)…

Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus

Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland

France Germany Greece Hungary

Iceland Ireland Italy Latvia

Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxemburg Malta

Netherlands Norway Poland

Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain

Sweden Turkey

For those travelling to Europe out of the catchment, there will be opportunities to see and experience at firsthand how other rural areas are looking after their cultural landscapes and they will return with new ideas and skills. For the Europeans that visit Cumbria, they will learn about our integrated partnership approach and the combination of environmental, cultural and economic actors that are the cornerstones of sustainable rural development. The visitors will add to the cultural landscape of Bassenthwaite Lake and act as a catalyst and magnet to attract local people, specially young people, into volunteering and playing an active role in securing a sustainable legacy for the lake and its catchment.

Cultural Exchange is to be utilised by all partners and community members and it is not possible to describe in detail the exchanges of staff, practitioners, stakeholders and students / trainees, beyond Year One.

Because international travel is not supported by HLF, the elements that are supported include……

· Hosting of international visitors who are adding to the cultural landscape of the catchment.

· Preparing staff and community members to travel to network partners in Europe.

· De-briefing returning staff and community members and assisting and facilitating them to disseminate and valorise their new ideas and skills.

International networking workshops

These are half-day meetings, on average occurring once a month. The venues are Ashgill, Trotters World and Newton Rigg Campus. At each workshop the issues of the Bassenthwaite catchment are focussed upon and there is a presentation of the current and up and coming international networking opportunities. Grampus and other partner staff contribute by suggesting linkages between specific ‘Reflections’ projects and themes. Meetings will usually involve some visiting participants from Europe. In 2007 Grampus is hosting visitors from Cyprus, Slovakia, Iceland, Germany, Slovenia and Poland.

Cultural forum

Each Reflections partner and selected stakeholders, including young people will join the Cultural Forum. They will meet for three times a year. They will review any reciprocal visits that have taken place and suggest amendments / additions to the Cultural Exchange project. The venue will be in the project office in Keswick.

Preparation of participants.

There are 24 preparation sessions, one for each of the placements, exchanges. The sessions are typically a half day and divide into cultural and linguistic preparation, content, focus, technology transfer and dissemination/ reporting. At some sessions, international hosts will be present.

De-brief & facilitate transfer of ideas & skills

This is a one-day event for those who have travelled. The date will be in the autumn of 2007. Up to 100 persons will attend and the venue is the COMET building (Outdoor Education) at Newton Rigg. There will be a selection of brief presentations from persons who participated and a series of afternoon breakout sessions to see how new ideas and skills from Europe can be integrated into the day-to-day management of the cultural landscape of the Bassenthwaite catchment.

Traditional skills placements.

Each placement is of 4-weeks duration and the generic name for the group of placements is ‘Training in Contemporary Applications of Traditional European Crafts’ (TICATEC). There are five host countries in Year One….

Bulgaria. The host is Balkan Assist and they operate in the Stara Planina mountains north of Sofia. They have issues, problems and opportunities similar to Bassenthwaite. They offer access to skills in lime burning, traditional building restoration, metal working, woodworking and pottery. They facilitate groups and individuals to develop cultural and eco-tourism.

Cyprus. There are two Cypriot hosts, the Akrotiri Cultural & Environmental Centre and the village of Lefkara. A combination of skills is offered in the use of local natural products such as dune grasses, wool, flax and a range of fibres. At Akrotiri the partner also manages a salt lake, riparian forest and a number of cultural sites, including ten churches.

Germany. Participants visiting Dübener Heide Naturpark near Leipzig will have access to woodworking skills and be involved in setting up and running the annual international wood festival (a model for Bassenthwaite festivals under ‘What’s in a Name?’. Other skills include heritage reconstruction and charcoal production.

Lithuania. In Lithuania the partner (the town of Zagare) run a ‘cherry festival’ each year, which is also a craft market. Other skills focus on the use of wool and the match closely to Cumbria’s Rural Women’s Network and ‘Woolclip’.

Slovakia. There are two Slovakian partners, the Ipel’ Union (visited by the Reflections team) and Krajina. The former is an NGO managing the cultural and environmental assets of the Ipel river watershed that runs from the Slovensky Raj National Park to the Danube Bend. Partners will see the Salka traditional skills centre, visit community forests and see bird hides being constructed from local materials. With Krajina, ceramics, wood carving and textiles training is offered, also cheese-making and county level cultural management through the Citizens Association.

Environmental skills placements

Each placement is of 4-weeks duration and the generic name for the group of placements is ‘Developing Environmental Skills in Rural Europe’ (DESIRE). There are five host countries in Year One….

Cyprus. There are two Cypriot hosts, the Akrotiri Cultural & Environmental Centre and the Cyprus College of Forestry / Griffon Vulture Project. At Akrotiri the partner manages a salt lake, riparian forest and works to encourage local sustainability in the five villages on the peninsula. The college & Vulture Project are a natural twin for the Forestry Commission and Whinlatter Forest Park in the Bassenthwaite catchment and will share ideas on eco-tourism, public access and afforestation.

Germany. Again the partner is Dübener Heide Naturpark near Leipzig who manage forests, heathlands and parts of the watershed of the Elbe and Mulde rivers. They are experts in beaver management and non-timer forest products. They also work to develop natural products from the local villages without compromising sustainability.

Netherlands. The partner is Staatsbosbeheer, the state forest service and the Flevorpolder region. They are experts in wood pasture management and offer the skills needed for this ancient form of agroforestry and husbandry. They are twins for the wood pasture management in Borrowdale and Keskadale.

Slovakia. The same two Slovakian partners, the Ipel’ Union (visited by the Reflections team) and Krajina are involved in DESIRE. The former is an NGO managing the cultural and environmental assets of the Ipel river watershed that runs from the Slovensky Raj National Park to the Danube Bend. Participants will see the wetland management of a RAMSAR site, work on fisheries management and bat protection. With Krajina, native forest management, forest nurseries, fungi management geoparks and high pasture management are offered.

Finland. The Finnish partner manages forest, runs a prehistoric reconstruction village and is responsible for an area of wetland adjacent to the Oulu river, which is important for breeding water fowl.

Czech Republic. The partner is Apple Farm, an organic farm unit producing fruit and vegetables and managing deciduous forest. Participants will learn integrated environmental management of farms, value adding to local products to reduce the carbon footprint and skills associated with running an eco-tourism business.

Cultural heritage exchange

Exchanges are from one to three weeks and are specifically for practitioners and staff rather than students. The partners are drawn from those offering the training placements but content focuses more on managerial skills rather than vocational skills. Icelandic partners, the Selfoss museum are also partners, offering their skills in village scale heritage management and vernacular building repair and restoration. And Irish partners, Sylviron Limited, specialists in Atlantic oak forest management are offering specialist skills in protection of this rare ecosystem, so important in the Bassenthwaite catchment.

Archaeological placements

These placements are for six to nine weeks and are more specialised. Participants would normally be studying archaeology and Cumbrians will be drawn from CIA in Carlisle and UCLan (Newton Rigg). The placements offer an opportunity to hone archaeological skills in the field. Participants are drawn from the above but additionally include a monastic site in Iceland and Götland University. The Scandinavian connection is important because of the perceived Norse impact in Cumbria.

Hosting European volunteers

For 2007, four partners have committed to sending a total of 60 beneficiaries to the Bassenthwaite catchment. They include the Cyprus Forestry College & Forest Service, Rakovice school of environment and tourism in Slovakia, Łukow School of Health & the Outdoors in Poland and Dübener Heide Naturpark from Germany. The persons visiting will be staff, students, teachers and practitioners. They will work on Bassenthwaite Reflections’ projects, advise, assist and develop new ideas. Certain individuals will join the ‘Cultural Form’.

Grampus Heritage and Training Ltd, Ashgill, Threapland,

Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 2EL, United Kingdom

Telephone: +44 (0) 16973 21516

Fax: +44 (0) 16973 23040

E.Mail: enquiries@grampusheritage.co.uk