Call for papers
If you were with us at the conference in Koper, Slovenia, you will certainly remember the warm invitation from our Polish friends to meet again next year in Sulejowek. Now we are working hard to deliver another exciting and inspiring event. Most importantly for the moment: The call for papers is open!  The theme will be Heroes, anti-heroes and villains: How we (re)create, use and dismantle them. Take your time to think about what you would most like to share with your international colleagues. Look at it from all sides, create new ideas, discard them, reformulate them… and use the upcoming holiday period to put everything together.  Don’t miss the deadline to send us your abstract: 5 January 2025.
Find out more about the requirements here: https://www.interpreteuropeconference.net/call-for-papers-2/ We are looking forward to a new colourful bouquet of heritage interpretation ideas, experience and visions.
Study visits
Deciding which study visits to take you on was not easy, as Warsaw and its surroundings offer a wide range of possibilities. Of course, you can’t visit the city without learning about the history of the Jews, the Warsaw Uprising and the impressive reconstruction after the Second World War. But what do apples and giraffes have to do with the conference topic? What stories does the Vistula River tell? And what awaits us in the Kampinoski National Park? Immerse yourself in the fascinating life of the city’s most famous daughter, Maria Skłodowska-Curie, or imagine the life of people in Communist times. We are sure that there is something interesting and inspiring for everyone, which can be discussed further over some tasty Polish food.
From our conference organiser
April is only a few months away and we’ll have a great chance to get to know each other and to exchange our unique experiences and ideas, during the #iecon25 conference in Sulejówek near Warsaw, Poland. We can’t wait to welcome you to the Józef Piłsudski Museum in Sulejówek (https://muzeumpilsudski.pl/en/home/) from 11-14 April 2025. Together we will interpret natural and cultural heritage in circumstances that for sure you’ll find inspiring. During the conference, besides the core programme of keynote speeches, presentations and workshops, we’ll have several other activities for you: cultural visits in Warsaw and nearby areas, pre- and post-conference tours and other opportunities to spend valuable time together. In the Piłsudski Museum itself you’ll be offered a range of interpretive guided tours and walks, as well as more traditional ways of ‘touching’ the history of Poland and Central Eastern Europe. You’ll be our special guests!

Bettina Lehnes is IE’s Event Coordinator. She can be contacted at: bettina.lehnes@interpret-europe.net. Anna Wachowiak from the Józef Piłsudski Museum is the conference organizer for 2025. She can be contacted at: a.wachowiak@mipws.pl.

To cite this article: Lehnes, Bettina & Wachowiak, Anna (2024) ‘iecon25 – Call for papers is open!‘ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 3-2024, pg.27-28.
Available online: PDF-Newsletter_2024_3.pdf

The Faculty of Humanities of the University of Primorska (UP FHŠ), in partnership with the Škocjan Caves Park (PŠJ), has established the UNESCO Chair of Interpretation and Education for Enhancing Integrated Heritage Approaches. The new Chair was approved by the UNESCO headquarters in Paris in August 2021 and it was formally established on 17 December 2021.

The Chair fills a gap in existing UNESCO Chairs globally. It recognises the key to sustainable heritage management in interpretation and education through integrated heritage approaches to answer the need for an inclusive approach to cultural and natural heritage management. The main guiding principles are participatory and value-based strategies, which can achieve integrated and sustainable natural and cultural heritage management through community involvement.

The department’s activities build upon the internationally renowned International Summer School of Museology and other educational and research activities of UP FHŠ, intertwined with the activities of Slovenia’s oldest UNESCO site, Škocjan Caves Park.

The newly established UNESCO Chair covers heritage studies, anthropology and cultural studies, archaeology, geography, history, intercultural studies, management, and biology from the scientific point of view.

As the core of an international network for joint research projects and an educational platform, the Chair will develop approaches and skills for heritage interpretation and education in a holistic perspective, based on the various discourses addressed by both partners’ research and activities (natural/cultural, tangible/intangible, authorised/alternative heritage discourse, etc.). With an innovative way of delivering education (aimed at both students and the general public), the Chair seeks to overcome stereotypical divisions between nature and culture, nations and ethnicities, professional sectors dealing with heritage, etc., and promote inclusion, cooperation, and awareness, empathy and peace. The main goal is to develop interpretation and education for professionals and the general public in an integrated approach to heritage.

The leading institutions of the UNESCO Chair complement each other with their rich experience in connecting different heritage discussions and approaches: UP FHŠ with an interdisciplinary approach to different heritage discourses in ethnically disputed territories and diverse types of heritage; and PŠJ with integrated heritage and nature management through the involvement of various stakeholders and communities. Both institutions are committed to overcoming the division between natural and cultural heritage: while PŠJ focuses on protecting natural values ​​and natural heritage, with the inclusion of a cultural component, UP FHŠ focuses on holistic research of cultural heritage, including the dimensions of nature protection. In the frame of the UNESCO Chair, UP FHŠ acts as an official institution in heritage education, with an interdisciplinary approach integrating archaeology, anthropology, art history, history, geography, conservation, museology, heritage tourism, intercultural studies, and heritage management. PŠJ has the role of the centre of non-formal education of the general public through UNESCO, MAB, Ramsar, etc. Institutional cooperation intertwines theory and practice as the starting point for sustainable education. Objectives of the UNESCO Chair complement the goals of the UP-research programme group on heritage.

The specific goals of the UNESCO Chair are to:

• create forms of interpretation that go beyond stereotypical divisions in the field of heritage;
• promote new approaches in heritage management and preservation and its promotion through participation and integration of traditional knowledge into development strategies;
• actively participate in the implementation and definition of new guidelines and policies in the field of heritage conservation, protection and monitoring, with an emphasis on conflict prevention and sustainable development;
• implement knowledge transfer through international and cross-border application and research projects.

Professor Irena Lazar, the Dean of UP FHŠ, is the head of the UNESCO Chair. The creation of the UNESCO Chair was supported by 30 established national and international institutions worldwide, such as universities, existing UNESCO chairs and other professional associations.

The UNESCO Chair presented its activities at the inauguration event in February, at which IE’s Managing Director, Helena Vičič, was present. The event’s main focus were the inauguration speeches delivered by Günter Köck (Austrian Academy of Science, Austrian delegate at UNESCO MAB-ICC, Vienna, Austria) and Darko Babić (University of Zagreb, president of ICOM ICTOP, Zagreb, Croatia).

Zrinka Mileusnić is the Head of the Department for Archaeology and Heritage at the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Primorska. She is an assistant professor in archaeology, heritage and heritage tourism programmes. She is also an active member of the newly established UNESCO Chair. You can contact her at: zrinka.mileusnic@fhs.upr.si.

To cite this article: Mileusnić, Zrinka (2022) ‘New steps for interpretation in Slovenia’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 1-2022, pg.18-19

Available online:https://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/PDF-Newsletter-2022_1-spring_draft-5.pdf

In October, an in-person event gathered around 120 participants, mostly heritage interpretation professionals, and took them on an interpretive journey through Terra Magica. That is a romantic nickname for the Croatian region of Istria. It is indeed magical for many reasons. For example, it contains a lot of folklore about enchanting creatures. This event helped us realise that the most magical creatures in Istria were of flesh and bone. They are all those people behind numerous projects that turn heritage into experiences for visitors in the most respectful and nourishing manner.

The central part of the conference took place in the small Istrian town of Svetvinčenat. It consisted of presentations by interpreters from all over Croatia. The entire event was filled with short examples of live interpretations by Istra Inspirit, the organiser. Istra Inspirit is an example of an innovative experiential tourism provider in Croatia. They’re best known for their theatre plays and theatric tours based on peculiar local history or legends in an authentic setting. Snippets of their shows served as perfect interludes between the formal presentations. We also had a chance to enjoy two of their plays. Night Ghost Stories covered the renaissance castle of Svetvinčenat in a dark cloak. Morgan’s Treasure in Dvigrad showed us how theatre and live interpretation build imaginary walls on a ruinous castle and bring history to life.

Throughout the conference, local heritage products and services were promoted. A wine workshop, wine and beer tastings, authentic food… Interpreters from the towns of Žminj and Vrsar unveiled their cooking skills and prepared traditional specialities.

The presentations were short but inspiring. We had a chance to listen to the experience, and get educational tips and ideas from more than 20 interpretive planners, trainers, guides, travel writers, and destination managers. Most of the presenters were also active Interpret Europe members, and there were many certified members. But the event was not limited to IE members. Many experts outside IE’s pool joined the event. Some people were only starting to explore heritage interpretation. Overall, it was a place of inspiration, networking, and exchange of ideas.

This event would not have taken place without IE’s Country Coordinator Croatia, Manuela Hrvatin. It was one of her goals when she applied to become a coordinator, and she started working on it the moment she took the role. Despite the strict covid prevention measures, she pulled it through with her enchanting ability to gently motivate people and unite them around common goals. She wasn’t alone, of course. She was supported by a big and dilligent team. Nevenka Lorencin, Ivana Maružin, Sandra Domijanić Dravec and  Lucija Šorić deserve a special mention for making sure that everything went as planned and making sure each and every attendee felt welcome and special.

The event received financial support from Croatian tourism and cultural authorities. That makes a significant step towards the recognition of interpretation by public bodies. Interpretation proved to be a link between two worlds that go hand in hand, yet are often hard to connect on an institutional level.

We visited several examples of good interpretive practice. We walked an interpretive trail near Vrsar and learned about the visions for the newly built scientific-educational centre. In the Miners House Arsia in Raša, we were all impressed by the history of the town, and humbled by the destinies of the miners. On the last day, we visited three ecomuseums. We kicked off the day with a taster of a traditional way of life by visiting Istrian de Dignan in Vodnjan. Boško, the authentic boškarin ox from their farm, stole our hearts! We went to Spacio Matika, part of Ecomuseum Batana, included in UNESCO’s Register of Good Safeguarding Practices. We were all caught singing the traditional songs there.

We admired the brave people who defied all odds to bypass three types of armed guards in the middle of the woods and the still of the night, just to exchange their produce for a pack of coffee. We learned about their culture and life in the emotional exhibition of ecomuseum Vlaški puti (Vlach paths).

The people behind all of these projects are passionate interpreters, the enchanting creatures of Terra Magica. What we get to visit and experience is usually just the visible tip of an iceberg made out of their dedicated life-works.

Three days were not enough to experience everything there is to experience, but it was a great start. Hopefully, a similar event will take place next year in another region of Croatia. I can’t wait!

More information:

Download the Manual for Participatory Tourism Connecting Community and Culture Through Storytelling that brings that shares the experience of Istra Inspirit: https://mint.gov.hr/UserDocsImages//AAA_2020_ABC/c_dokumenti//200212_storrytelling_eng.pdf

Follow the event’s Facebook page to get a better picture of what it all looked like: https://www.facebook.com/nfib.hrvatska

Contact IE’s Country Coordinator Croatia, Manuela Hrvatin, for more information about Interpret Europe activities in Croatia: manuela.hrvatin@interpret-europe.net

Iva Silla is the author of Secret Zagreb walking tours (www.secret-zagreb.com) and the Croatia Underrated podcast (www.croatiaunderrated.com). She is an experienced Interpret Europe Certified Interpretive Trainer. Contact her at: iva@secret-zagreb.com.

To cite this article: Silla, Iva (2021) ‘First Croatian national forum of heritage interpretation’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2021, pg.30-31

Available online: https://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Newsletter-Winter-2021.pdf

During and post COP26, held in Glasgow in November, Interpret Europe members have been using our online platforms to discuss and share how heritage interpretation could be a way to engage more people with the huge issues surrounding the climate chaos we are facing. 

Social media: HI for sustainability
Long before we used plastic bags, people would craft carrying vessels from available local materials. Every household had at least one great seamstress who would ensure that the family’s clothing was fit to last and repaired again (and again) as necessary. The food we ate would follow the patterns of the changing seasons. Water power, wind power and horse power were not just the most sustainable form of energy, they were the only source of energy. What else can we learn (or remember) from our ancestors to help take us forward?

While all eyes were on COP26 and the decisions that will influence our future, we looked at the role of interpretation addressing sustainability for our planet. IE members shared some stories that showcase traditions, knowledge and skills of how people coexisted with nature in the past and who are maybe still using (or re-using) those skills today. They also shared smart solutions that Earth has of looking after itself – and us. The stories were shared with the hashtag #HIforsustainability alongside #COP26 and the text was edited for various platforms, including Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

We can still add to this online campaign so send us in your great examples of #HIforsustainability and we’ll feature them: news@interpret-europe.net. 

Thematic table: If not us, who?
On 1 December, IE’s Natural Heritage Team hosted a Thematic table: If not us, who? Using heritage interpretation to engage on climate issues.

With COP26 behind us and being aware of the huge work and efforts lying ahead of us all, members were invited to join online for a presentation and group discussion on how heritage interpretation can contribute to raising awareness, making people more mindful about our actions, and to consider what the reality is out there that we are facing.

Vida Ungar, IE’s Natural Heritage Coordinator, and members of the natural heritage team shared some key points from the Climate Heritage Network (of which IE is a member), including an overview of a paper that is being written to highlight the importance of heritage in engaging with climate change, and also presented ‘ecosophy’ – the philosophy of ecological harmony.

The main conclusion from the group discussion was that it can be difficult to talk about or explain sustainability and climate change in relation to heritage interpretation in practice. Most of the time we are still struggling with explaining heritage interpretation itself and so the first step is to ‘improve’ ourselves and improve our communication in relation to sustainability and climate change.

The members’ Facebook group remains a good place to continue these discussions if you come across something new to share or wish to seek advice from others.

Webinar: Interpreting climate change – or anything – requires that interpreters understand people’s worldviews
On 9 December, our monthly webinar was hosted by Jon Kohl, building on the topic of his article published in the Autumn 2021 issue of our newsletter (https://interpret-europe.net/news/newsletter/2021/7107/).

Jon says: Climate change may prove the ultimate challenge for interpreters. It may be one part technology and two parts beliefs and perceptions, squarely within the communication realm of heritage interpretation. Yet climate change stretches its tentacles, not just in our physical, scientifically measurable world, but throughout the abstract, subtle, philosophical, and spiritual dimensions into which many people do not or cannot peer. Consequently, all people see only parts of climate change and some deny its existence altogether. But those who see very little or those who enjoy a deeper and broader understanding are not randomly selected, rather they distribute across worldviews; as those who inhabit different worldviews construct reality – climate change in particular – very differently. As interpretation guru Sam Ham says, “The audience is everything.” Every professional communicator, interpreter without exception, then, must thoroughly comprehend people in order to make their interpretation relevant, to mobilise their values, unlock their stories, and ultimately meet them where they are. Interpreters, however, cannot do this successfully if they are unaware of worldviews, including their own, and how people who hold these worldviews construct reality.

Jon opened the webinar with a presentation taking us through some of the psychology and philosophy of worldviews and their likely impact on different people’s ability to understand climate change concepts. He then explored why it is so important for interpreters to understand worldviews for all interpretations and how this understanding can improve our effectiveness in interpreting climate change – or any large topic or issue.

The theory ignited an engaged debate and participants shared some of their own experiences of facing different worldviews in their work, with many vowing to find out more and take an online test to establish their own ‘centre of gravity’ to better understand the potential position of others that they interact with. Everyone agreed that the most important aspect of being an interpreter is finding a communication method appropriate to the situation

Marie Banks is IE’s News Coordinator. She can be contacted at: marie.banks@interpret-europe.net.

To cite this article: Banks, Marie (2021) ‘Hot topic – Heritage interpretation for climate cooling’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2021, pg.7

Available online: https://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Newsletter-Winter-2021.pdf

 The European Heritage Alliance, of which IE is a member, turns ten this year and has launched a wide call to organise inspiring citizen debates across Europe for the rest of this year. The topic should focus on the future of Europe in heritage sites.

This grassroots initiative is a meaningful contribution both to the Conference on the Future of Europe [https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/priorities-2019-2024/new-push-european-democracy/conference-future-europe_en] which officially launched on 9 May 2021, and to the New European Bauhaus [https://europa.eu/new-european-bauhaus/index_en] which we featured in the last newsletter.

The objectives of this initiative are to:

• Engage cultural heritage stakeholders and citizens to discuss the future of Europe;
• Demonstrate that cultural heritage has a unique role to play in the co-designing and shaping of our common future;
• Prove that Europe’s heritage sites provide inspiring settings to combine professional expertise with citizens’ engagement.

If you want to take part, there is a handy communication toolkit containing visual, videos, and suggestions for social media posts and newsletter/ website articles. The press release is also available here.

It would be great to see our IE members get involved with this. If you do take part, send a link to IE’s Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn account and we will be sure to share it with other Heritage Alliance members in the network.

To cite this article: IE News Team (2021) ‘ Citizens debates – Your chance for your say’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 2-2021, 32.

Available online: https://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Newsletter-Summer-2021.pdf

‘Recreating tourism through heritage interpretation’ is the title of our next Interpret Europe Conference (#iecon21) that is due to take place 1 – 4 October 2021 in Sigüenza, Spain. Only in May will we be able to decide whether we can follow this plan, or whether this conference needs to be turned into another web conference. In any case, it is time to call for your papers.

Experiencing heritage should bring an added value to people’s lives. Encouraging more meaningful experiences can lead to more mindfulness among visitors as well as among local people. Can interpretation support communities around heritage sites to re-launch tourism in a more sustainable way?

In many countries and regions, tourism contributes to the development of heritage communities. Over the last year, the tourism ecosystem has been greatly impacted by the global pandemic, which has meant a forced shift – into a more resilient, sustainable and interconnected direction?

There is a need to rethink tourism’s success, both at the destination and visitor level, by encouraging heritage interpretation. Closer cooperation between tourism and heritage interpretation could lead to new approaches from which especially smaller communities might benefit.

Our 2021 conference aims to share and exchange the theory and practice of interpretive approaches to the development of tourism and to rethink the role heritage interpretation plays in tourism and in community development at tourist destinations.

Questions

When you prepare your proposal, please consider questions such as:

• Why is heritage interpretation a suitable tool to recreate tourism after the crisis?
• Can heritage interpretation empower communities and make them more resilient?
• Can heritage interpretation also lead to more sustainable tourism?
• How can heritage interpretation help to foster human values as defined by UNESCO?
• How can heritage interpretation make tourists and local people more mindful towards our common future?

Apart from dealing with these questions, we also welcome presentations and workshops that focus on the theory and practice of heritage interpretation as a discipline. Besides theoretical essays, descriptions of case studies of outstanding sites, or remarkable practices may also fulfil the requirements. 

Format
Interpret Europe conferences attract up to 200 attendees from as many as 40 countries. Besides four keynote addresses in the plenary, 60-80 workshops and presentations are run over four days in parallel, in different strands. The call refers to these parallel sessions.

Presentations can be 25 or 55 minutes long, including ten minutes for exchanges of views. We generally recommend keeping presentations as short and as inspiring as possible. Workshops can be 55 or 85 minutes long and need to be differentiated by ensuring the active involvement of the participants.

Selection
A dedicated Review Team will consider all paper abstracts and decide whether they are a sufficient basis for a workshop or presentation.

Submissions
Please submit an abstract of your presentation or interactive workshop by 1 July 2021 using the template on www.interpreteuropeconference.net/call-for-papers. You will find all information about requirements for this abstract there.

Proceedings
Conference proceedings will be published on the IE website from the day that the conference begins. They will have their own ISBN and include all full papers received by 3 September 2021.

Delivering a full paper is not mandatory for giving a presentation or workshop. Either can also be based on the paper abstract. Paper abstracts are published as part of the proceedings.

Contact
Our IE Conference, ‘Recreating tourism through heritage interpretation’, will be organised by our institutional member, Travindy Spain.

If you have any questions, please contact the Conference Manager, Ángela Rodríguez from Travindy: management@interpreteuropeconference.net.

Nuria Mohedano is IE’s Events Coordinator. She can be contacted at: nuria.mohedano@interpret-europe.net.

To cite this article: Mohedano, Nuria (2021) ‘Recreating tourism through heritage interpretation: Call for papers’. In Interpret Europe Newsletter 1-2021, 35-36.

Available online: http://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Newsletter-Spring-2021.pdf