Heritage professionals are increasingly engaging with LGBTQIA+ histories, lives and experiences, yet many report uncertainty about how to do so responsibly, confidently and with care. Questions around language, representation, consultation, organisational context and public response can feel complex, particularly when there is no single ‘right’ way to proceed.
In response to this, the Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI) has recently published a new Best Practice Guidance on LGBTQIA+ Heritage Interpretation, developed collaboratively by a working group of LGBTQIA+ interpreters from across the sector. Rather than offering prescriptive rules or checklists, the guide is structured around a set of open, practical questions designed to support reflection, discussion and better decision-making in real-world contexts.

The guidance is aimed at interpreters working in any heritage setting, museums, galleries, archives, historic sites or community projects, and at any scale or budget.

Its core premise is simple – good LGBTQIA+ interpretation begins not with certainty, but with thoughtful questioning. The guide invites teams to pause and consider where they are starting from, how care is embedded in their work, who is involved in shaping interpretation, how words and images are used, and how organisations respond to feedback or challenge. There are no right or wrong answers, just more informed, thoughtful ones that emerge through reflection, collaboration and care. A key strength of the guide is its emphasis on process. It was developed through shared discussion and debate – through a working group of LGBTQIA+ interpreters representing a breadth of practice in natural, cultural and historic interpretation; activism; design; writing; collections; communications; in-person interpretation; interpretive planning and a range of career stages and geographies. It quickly became clear that queer interpretation is far too complex for a simple list of ‘dos and don’ts’. The resulting guide reflects the reality that LGBTQIA+ heritage interpretation is not a single story, voice or approach. This collaborative development really mattered to us. Interpretation is rarely at its best when created in isolation. Multiple perspectives strengthen practice. And in work that seeks to address LGBTQIA+ heritage, lived experience, collaboration and care are essential. Case studies and suggested further reading offer inspiration rather than templates, while a short glossary supports those who may be new to the terminology often used in this field.

Importantly, the guidance also acknowledges the organisational context in which interpretation takes place. It encourages heritage professionals to consider values, ethics and institutional responsibility alongside creativity and storytelling, and to distinguish between genuine questions from audiences and bad faith responses that may require firm boundaries. In line with AHI’s commitment to inclusive and ethical practice, the guide is free to download and intended for international use. While developed within a UK and Ireland context, its questions and principles are designed to be adaptable across different cultural, legal and institutional landscapes. Ultimately, the guide does not aim to provide definitive answers. Instead, it offers a framework for better conversations, conversations that can support more authentic, confident and care-led LGBTQIA+ heritage interpretation over time.

Download the free guide here:
https://ahi.org.uk/resource/lgbtqia-heritage-interpretation/

Find out more about AHI here:
https://ahi.org.uk/

Free webinar

In addition to the guide, AHI is also hosting a free webinar: LGBTQIA+ heritage interpretation.
When? Thursday 21 May 2026 at 17.00 BST/ 18.00 CEST
Join us for this online session where we will showcase the contents of the new guide, discuss how we attempted to ‘queer’ the interpretation process and highlight some of the case studies from across the UK and Ireland.

Queer heritage is embedded in society and can be found in museums, galleries, heritage properties, outdoor sites and beyond. But some interpreters tell us they are unsure as to how to approach this subject. This guidance and webinar aim to offer some reassurance, some insight and some inspiration through reference to some inspirational queer interpretation. There will be time for questions and conversation during the session. The webinar will be hosted by Steve Slack (FAHI) with members of the collective who created the best practice guide. Find out more and register here: https://ahi.org.uk/event/lgbtqia-heritage-interpretation-webinar/

Danni Gilbert is Marketing & Communications lead at the Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI). She works with heritage organisations to support inclusive, ethical interpretation practice and leads on sector wide guidance, campaigns and knowledge sharing initiatives. Contact: marketing@ahi.org.uk.
Steve Slack is a heritage interpretation consultant in the UK and a Fellow of the Association of Heritage Interpretation (FAHI). His current work focusses on including audiences in participative exhibition making processes and in engaging visitors through interpretive experiences that provoke dialogue and active meaning making. He can be contacted at: steve@steveslack.co.uk. 

To cite this article:
Gilbert, Danni & Slack, Steve (2026) “Interpreting with the LGBTQIA+ community in mind”, Interpret Europe Newsletter Spring 2026, p. 28.
Available online: Interpret Europe Newsletter Spring 2026.

This year, in the same year that our ‘big sister’ from the UK turned 50, Interpret Europe reached its own significant birthday. The initial establishment of the informal European network which later became formalised as IE was 25 years ago (although IE was only officially born 10 years later). Several of IE’s founding and active members have also been significantly involved in the sector through AHI over the years and this seems a good time to reflect on our achievements, growth and increased recognition for the heritage interpretation profession. It is a real pleasure to feature the thoughts and experience from one of AHI’s newer members in our newsletter. Hopefully you may spot some parallels with the work we are doing and the future ambitions of both organisations aligning. Here’s to the next 25 and 50 years of heritage interpretation helping to shape a more inclusive future! – Editor

In an increasingly busy world, it’s not always easy to pause and reflect — but attending the 50th anniversary conference of the Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI) on 8th October 2025 was an experience worth sharing. It was an outstanding opportunity to engage with professionals dedicated to advancing best practice across the heritage interpretation sector.

As my first AHI conference as a member, it was an invaluable opportunity to connect with colleagues and explore current thinking in the heritage interpretation sector. The AHI continues to play a vital role in supporting interpreters in the UK and internationally through professional development, training, and advocacy.

The keynote address by Dr Karis Jade Petty, ‘Into the Garden: Inclusive Heritage for Sight Impaired Visitors’, offered profound insights into accessibility and inclusion in outdoor heritage spaces. Her excellent work demonstrates how thoughtful design benefits all visitors.

Gaynor Legall CBE, Chair of The Heritage & Cultural Exchange, delivered an inspiring presentation — ‘Whose Wales? Reclaiming the Past, Rewriting the Future’. Her reflections on the multicultural heritage of Cardiff’s Tiger Bay powerfully highlighted the need for inclusive narratives that reflect all communities.

Her inspirational talk highlighted the men and women who helped build Cardiff’s docklands communities, despite facing discrimination, exclusion, and systemic oppression. Their resilience shaped one of Wales’s most vibrant multicultural identities.

Through her ongoing Tiger Bay and World project, The Heritage & Cultural Exchange works to preserve and share these important stories, ensuring that the lived experiences of Cardiff’s Black population and its diverse docklands community are remembered, respected, and recognised as a vital part of Wales’s national history.

Pete Roch and Jason Davidson of Squeaky Pedal films delivered an insightful presentation: ‘Beyond the Label: Unlocking Hidden Stories through Film interpretation’. They are an award-winning heritage film, animation, and television production company working with museums, cultural institutions and broadcasters to create inspiring and engaging content and immersive museum experiences that connect with diverse audiences that bring history to life.

Eric Langham’s session, ‘A Circular Economy for Exhibitions’, also resonated strongly, reinforcing the value of sustainable, reusable approaches — principles I apply in my own heritage art practice including my latest heritage art installation, Under African Skies.

AHI50 was both insightful and motivating, reaffirming the importance of interpretation in shaping inclusive and sustainable heritage practice. 

Jacqueline Braithwaite is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and a retired Head of Design in FE & HE. Jacqueline is a mixed media & heritage artist, and she gives her time and experience to support the sector through being a Creative & Disability Advocate. She is a community researcher at SS Great Britain and is a Trustee & Advisory Board Member of the same museum and Beckford Tower which is part of The Bath Preservation Trust in Bath, UK.  Jacqueline can be contacted at: jacqueline_braithwaite@yahoo.co.uk.

To cite this article: Braithwaite, Jacqueline (2025) ‘Reflections on the 50th anniversary AHI conference’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4‑2025, p. 25-26.
Available online: Newsletter winter 2025

At the 14th Advisory Forum on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe in Türkyie, heritage interpretation was placed as a central pillar and a cross-cutting priority for developing Cultural Routes across Europe and beyond. Drawing on the panel discussion to which IE contributed, this article highlights the Forum’s recommendations and what this means for heritage interpretation. 

Set against the dramatic landscape of Cappadocia, Forum gathered over 350 participants to reflect on how Cultural Routes can strengthen heritage protection, sustainable tourism, and community engagement. Heritage interpretation as a cross-cutting skill can contribute to all these developmental needs of the Routes. Heritage interpretation was referred to in terms that Interpret Europe has been advocating for in recent years. This was due to some influential speakers, among whom were academics such as Mike Robinson and Chris Whitehead from the UK, and Peter Debrine from UNESCO, who represented our profession alongside IE’s director Helena Vičič. 

In the panel on Heritage Interpretation, speakers emphasised that interpretation today is no longer simply about conveying information. It is about shaping relationships between people and place, between past and present, and across cultures. The Forum’s conclusions strongly echoed this shift, calling for innovative, inclusive, and values-based interpretation that emotionally resonates with audiences and brings human values to life through providing holistic interpretive experiences. 

An equally important element of the conclusions paper was the recognition that interpretation must be co-created with communities, ensuring plural perspectives and acknowledging diverse, and at times contested, histories. Community interpretation restores the bond between residents and their heritage, and allows visitors to engage with authentic, lived experiences rather than curated narratives.

Interpreters are positioned not merely as communicators but as facilitators of dialogue, empathy, and intercultural understanding across transnational networks. The Forum’s encouragement to develop shared interpretive frameworks (across routes), collaborate with guide associations, and invest in training, marks a major step toward elevating interpretation as a professional field within the Cultural Routes programme.

The conclusions also carry significant implications for European cultural policy. By linking interpretation to urgent contemporary issues, such as climate change, migration, social inequalities, and environmental degradation, the Forum reframed interpretation as an action-oriented tool capable of inspiring societal change.

This positions interpreters as contributors not only to heritage management, but also to democratic participation and social cohesion, echoing the human-rights-based principles of the Faro Convention.

For the future of cultural routes, the Forum’s outcomes provide a clear blueprint. Interpretation is recognised as a driver of sustainable tourism, capable of deepening visitor engagement while helping to disperse heavy footfall away from overburdened destinations. It supports local economies by empowering residents to become guides and heritage ambassadors. And importantly, it reinforces landscape-based approaches that place communities at the heart of heritage protection.

As experienced during the discussions in Cappadocia, the momentum around heritage interpretation has rarely been stronger. The Forum’s conclusions reaffirm that interpretation is central to building a more inclusive, resilient, and meaningful cultural landscape across Europe. For Interpret Europe, this moment represents both a responsibility and an opportunity: to support Europe’s heritage sector in ways that speak to the challenges and hopes of our time, through training, networking, advocacy and policy work.  

These recommendations signal a paradigm shift in the cultural sector that is underway. This new approach to interpretation is a guiding light of all IE progammes, including training, the Learning Landscapes initiative and the upcoming conference in Faro, Portugal, that will build on the spirit of the Faro Convention. 

The IE News Team is led by Marie Banks, News Coordinator. She can be contacted at: marie.banks@interpret-europe.net.

Why not join the next IE conference in Portugal in April 2026 to discuss more about the Cultural Routes Forum and the wider implications of the recognition of interpretation. www.interpreteuropeconference.net.   

To cite this article: IE News Team (2025) ‘Reflections from the 14th Advisory Forum on Cultural Routes’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4‑2025, p. 4-5.
Available online: Newsletter winter 2025

The Big Green Project is funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the EU. It unites 15 partners from 13 countries, among which are non-governmental organisations, universities, artistic groups and art companies. The project seeks to explore innovative ways of using art as a promoter of sustainability. The mission of Interpret Europe, as one of the partners, is to demonstrate how heritage interpretation can support and enhance this process. The project is in its second year of implementation. Each year, artists from various countries take to experiment with a different element of the environment in their work – painting, sculpture, visual and applied arts, music, dance, theatre and more. The environmental theme of Year 2, which is currently being explored by the selected European artists, is SOIL. Last year they worked with AIR and they will dive into WATER in the next year.
The artists gather together with all project partners for a retreat where science and creativity are united. The first retreat took place in Hungary in October 2023, and the second in Latvia in August 2024. The hosting countries for years 3 and 4 are Portugal and Poland. The results of the artists’ work are then presented at various festivals, such as the Valley of Arts (Hungary) and Homo Novus (Latvia).
More information about the project can be found here: https://proprogressione.com/en/project/the-big-green/

Simana Markovska has been a sustainable tourism expert for 25 years, promoting heritage interpretation in Bulgaria through her work as both the chairperson of the association Pirin Tourism Forum and a freelancer. Simana also started the informal community of Interpret Bulgaria. She is an IE trainer for the Certified Interpretive Writing (CIW) course. She can be contacted at: smarkovska@mail.bg.

To cite this article: Markovska, Simana (2024) ‘Going Green, and Big ‘ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 3-2024, pg.9.
Available online: PDF-Newsletter_2024_3.pdf

On 8 October 2024, the directors of Interpret Europe and WHIPIC, Helena Vičič and Chang-nam Hong, signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The agreement provides a framework for collaborations in research and capacity building which aim at furthering value-based, more inclusive and people-centred approaches in the interpretation and presentation of heritage.
WHIPIC, the International Centre for Interpretation and Presentation of World Heritage Sites, was established in 2022 as a UNESCO Category 2 Centre in Sejong-si, Korea, out of the growing need for in-depth research and development of 21st century heritage interpretation theory and techniques.
WHIPIC and Interpret Europe are both dedicated to creating an environment where all groups who feel related to a heritage suite can actively participate in the process of heritage valuation and promote its values. We both aim to enhance the theory and practice of heritage interpretation in order to address contemporary challenges due to globalisation and climate change. There is an urgent need to accelerate transformation towards sustainability and social justice, based on respect for human dignity and universal human rights.
In this context, it can really matter how people interpret ‘their own’ heritage and how they perceive other people’s history and heritage. Neglect or misrepresentations, disinformation and outright contempt of ‘the others’ can put people against each other.
Interpretive presentations of heritage can do both, enhance mutual understanding between people from diverse backgrounds, or – inadvertently or deliberately – sow division and conflict within plural societies and international organisations. They can contribute to understanding of and respect for human rights or they can undermine the defences of peace in people’s minds.
Mutual benefits of our collaboration
During the last decade, Interpret Europe began to develop a value-based approach which is underpinned by a better understanding of universal and culture-specific aspects of basic human values. This is still work-in-progress. While some tools and methods have already been included in IE’s training programme, we still need to further develop a professional code of ethics, principles and practical guidelines for value-based heritage interpretation in European. This is one of the major tasks IE wants to tackle between 2025 and 2029 through the HI-People project. This project allows us to involve members and other heritage stakeholders in a broader discussion to ensure that the value-based approach will be useful for practitioners who work in different contexts.
At the same time, WHIPIC began a research project to review the definitions of ‘heritage interpretation’ and ‘heritage presentation’.These are considered as two different but overlapping activities in the context of UNESCO’s World Heritage system (cf. the ICOMOS Charter for the Interpretation and Presentation of Cultural Heritage Sites). In 2024, Patrick Lehnes, IE’s Cultural Heritage Coordinator, was invited to join a team of expert advisors for a follow-up research project on new principles for heritage interpretation and presentation. WHIPIC’s project aims to support UNESCO’s World Heritage system, but it also wants to inspire other heritage sites.
Interpret Europe benefits from WHIPIC’s global approach, which involves experts and stakeholders from other cultural backgrounds. On the other hand, IE contributes with considerations, tools and methods developed within its value-based approach. The collaboration allows us to align our respective ‘principles and guidelines’ as much as possible. But IE will still need freedom to adapt the principles and guidelines to the specific needs of interpreters who work in European contexts with a great variety of moveable and immovable, tangible and intangible heritage assets of local, regional or global significance, while the WHIPIC principles must be compatible with the doctrinal texts of UNESCO’s World Heritage system.
During the next five years, both organisations will also support each other and conduct joint activities in other areas, such as applied research and capacity building for World Heritage sites in Asia, Africa and Oceania. The EU grant that IE will receive from 2025, will enable us to intensify this collaboration. WHIPIC intends to also regularly visit IE conferences and thus engage European interpreters in its activities.
Our MoU was signed at the sidelines of two international workshops and a conference organised by WHIPIC which brought together several experts from around the globe from academia, law, heritage management, conservation and other related disciplines, including an NAI representative. We took part in inspiring and fruitful discussions which are promising for a mutually beneficial collaboration in the coming years. 

Helena Vičič is IE’s Managing Director. She can be contacted at: helena.vicic@interpret-europe.net.
Patrick Lehnes is IE’s Cultural Heritage Coordinator. He can be contacted at: patrick.lehnes@interpret-europe.net.

To cite this article: Vičič, Helena & Lehnes, Patrick (2024) ‘New partnership with UNESCO WHIPIC‘ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 3-2024, pg.7-8.
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

The Global Alliance for Heritage Interpretation (GAHI) is taking networking of interpreters around the globe to the next level. It offers a platform for meeting and exchanging between experts, encouraging them to either join national organisations within GAHI or to establish their own national organisations. However, another extremely important role of GAHI is the exchange of views and ideas about our profession, and this year a programme of webinars presented by most of the global heritage interpretation organisations is being offered for free.

In this second webinar in the series, Thorsten Ludwig presented on behalf of IE and we were proud to showcase a potted history of IE’s philosophical development over recent years, along with some examples of concrete work undertaken to develop the heritage interpretation profession. The fact that the topic for this session highlighted the importance of our work in a global context, with war on the horizon, was even more poignant. Thorsten used this background to consider ideas about why interpreters are needed in contemporary society: using heritage to help people make sense of the world, but also, to actively and critically consider our values, attitudes and way of life.

Thorsten traced the evolution of Interpret Europe over the past five years, from our 2016 conference, ‘Heritage interpretation – for the future of Europe’, through the EU award-winning initiative, ‘Engaging citizens with Europe’s cultural heritage’, to the recent collaboration with UNESCO on ‘value-based heritage interpretation’, which will become the core mandate of interpretation at all UNESCO WHS visitor centres.

It is time to think about the further development of the interpretive profession and Thorsten gave us plenty of food for thought to inspire us to look deeper at our profession and the intentions behind our practice. There seemed to be a noticeable echo in the interpretive community.

Referring to Freeman Tilden’s founding principles of interpretation and to Jon Batiste’s recent Grammy Awards acceptance speech, the conclusion to this webinar – and the call to action for us as interpreters – was: “Let’s turn heritage sites and objects into instruments, empowering people to become artists who shape our future in a more peaceful and sustainable way”.

You can catch up on recordings of the GAHI webinars, and see the programme for future ones which run until December 2022, on the GAHI website here: https://www.gahi.online/global-excellence-in-heritage-interpretation-webinar-series/

To cite this article: Thorsten Ludwig (2022) ‘Can interpretation prevent war?’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 1-2022, pg.6

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

The Center for Development of Museums, Heritage and Culture – MuZEH Lab is a centre opened for the community in April 2021 based in Durrës city, Albania. The centre was founded with the mission of creating a new philosophy of using the discipline of museology, heritage and culture as a way to educate society, advocating for museums and their professionals and creating civic activism and dialogue through various forms of heritage, arts and creativity. MuZEH Lab is a cultural community-based centre with a museum-based approach (a hybrid format), aiming to work closely with communities to increase cultural awareness in society, and turning them into future actors of social change and towards their designation as European citizens.

The background
The Movable Carpet Project aims to preserve in a visual way three important mosaics of ancient Durrës (Dyrrachium), two of them lost as not accessible and the other one removed from its place of origin and exhibited in the National Historic Museum in Tirana. As history shows, Dyrrachium has a long archaeological and civilization history since its foundation in BC627. Through the centuries the city has shown different cultural approaches, changes and development. But as centuries have moved from the Corinthian colony to invasion of the Roman Empire through to the Byzantine and Ottoman periods, the city has shown a vivid experience of living, learning and resistance. With the different cultures, ancient local inhabitants exchanged and learned old and new techniques of pavement decoration, which has shown up during vast archaeological excavations.

This project consists of creating a playground mosaics game. Through this, we want to put people into pieces of history when photography didn’t exist, as the possibility of admiring and engaging with art production. We aim to engage people (but mostly children) through methods of informal learning, engagement, inclusiveness, fun and knowledge about the mosaics and provide reflection on the values they provide – especially to those mosaics that are no longer accessible.

Many citizens of Durrës don’t know about these sites, as their location and the details is information more likely known by academics, archaeological professors and cultural management practitioners. With so little known about their presence, people’s curiosity can’t be sparked and, in that sense, we have an inequality of knowledge and thus a lack of appreciation for common cultural heritage.

Equal knowledge about heritage should be a right of education, relevant also for further transmission to future generations, but in this case that knowledge transmission is missing.

This playground game is designed around three mosaics: Orfeu, Beauty of Durrës and Meandri.

The mosaic of Orfeu as it is commonly known even in archaeological literature, belongs to the second century AD according to archaeologists. Its discovery in the basement of a house in Durrës dates back to 1988 and it was declared as a cultural monument of the first category. It cannot be approached or visited since it is currently being preserved in situ.

The same is true of the mosaic of Meandri, which also lies in the basement of a building and is flooded by water. It was also declared as a cultural monument of the first category for preservation and access to it is impossible. It expresses geometrical forms as a labyrinth, a design that has been present in pavement decorations in Albania since the first century BC.

Known as the ‘Beauty of Durrës’, the mosaic of the announcement of spring portrays a polychromatic girl surrounded by flowers and leaves and has a long archaeological history, dating back to the fourth century BC. It was first discovered during 1916 by Camillo Prashniker and covered again losing the first orientation. After many years it was re-discovered and documented by an esteemed archaeologist, Vangjel Toçi.

The movable carpet playground game is conceived as a movable puzzle so the activity can be enjoyed in different places. The activity uses several methodologies for achieving appreciation of the historical and decorative significance of these ancient mosaics. We also want for adults to rediscover their connection and emotions with their childhood when games were a major healthy activity of everyday life. The game is mentored and people are guided through it with particular information after each puzzle; historical evidence presented in an interpretive way (period, style, colors, symbols, quizzes, and with place orientation coordinates). This entertainment and engagement outside the home and without technology inspires children to delve into history and enjoy a cultural discovery.

Between the end of September and mid-December 2021, a total of 100 children aged between 6-11 got to play this playground game, along with 20 teachers and heritage professionals in four different spaces: MuZEH Lab, a school and public space in Durrës city.Thanks to the support of Goethe Zentrum Albania for funding this project. MuZEH Lab is also thankful also to the students of archaeological tourism at Aleksander Moisiu University and volunteers for mentoring the workshop.

Inesa Sulaj is from Albania and is a co-founder of MuZEH Lab. She is currently studying for an MSc in Museum Studies at the University of Leicester, UK. She can be contacted at: ines.sula@hotmail.com.

Dorina Xheraj-Subashi is a co-founder of MuZEH Lab – Center for development of Museums, Heritage and Culture. She also teaches topics in Museum Studies and Cultural Heritage in the Tourism Department of Aleksandër Moisiu, University of Durrës, Albania. She can be contacted at: dorina.xheraj@hotmail.com.

To cite this article: Sulaj, Inesa & Xheraj-Subashi, Dorina (2021) ‘Movable Carpet Project’ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2021, pg.28-29

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

The workshop’s programme consisted of several lectures and interactive workshops led by four different, very inspiring individuals: 

• Valya Stergioti, IE’s Training Coordinator and a freelance interpretation trainer and planner, introduced the attendees to the world of heritage interpretation, vividly describing her main principles with the help of many examples from her experience. She emphasised the idea of ‘provocation instead of instruction’wherein heritage is brought closer to the user via universal human themes and experiences. 
• Daniela Angelina JelinÄŤić, a scientific adviser at the Institute for Development and International Relations in Zagreb, dealt with the senses and she practically illustrated the possibility of provoking emotions with the help of sensory stimuli. 
• Dragana Lucija Ratković Aydemir, Director of Muses Ltd consulting and management in culture and tourism, co-founder and vice-president of Interpret Croatia and IE’s Country Coordinator for Croatia, illustrated the art of interpretation planning with the example of her award-winning project, the ˜Kuća o batani’ eco-museum. She pointed out the power of heritage interpretation for the preservation of local identity and the vital role which the support of the local community has in it. 
• Lana Domšić, lecturer and coordinator of international cooperation on the course of cultural management at the accredited ˜Baltazar Zaprešić’ University lead the participants into the world of participatory approach in heritage interpretation, which was also her research subject in her PhD thesis, ˜The participatory interpretation of heritage and the social effects on the young’. 

We asked Lana Domšić to comment and expand on her workshop, which she called ˜Interpretation of heritage and tourism and the sustainable development of local communities’, and to speak about the impressions that she gained from the course:

‘The changes in the methods of communication and cultural spending which have come about in contemporary society, notably following the development of Internet technology, have also led to the changes in the understanding of the role of heritage interpretation,’she says.

Lana’s workshop concluded that traditional tours are no longer enough to attract and hold the attention of visitors. The task for heritage institutions and experts is to abandon their role as expert and turn into facilitators who will enable interaction with heritage and encourage users into the communication, creation and the sharing of content. Museums and places of heritage must transform from static monuments into valuable resources for the sustainable development of a community and its learning.

During the highly interactive session, Lana and the participants discussed possible methods to personalise heritage and to encourage active inclusion through offering alternative viewpoints, user-created content, digital technology and participatory design. The participants contributed significantly with ideas and examples from their own practice or from heritage institutions that they had visited. The group also practised encouraging users into the active involvement by asking relevant and provocative questions.

Lana concluded:

‘It was a special honour for me, and I am pleased that I gave my presentation at this gathering in the company of three top experts in the field of heritage interpretation and cultural tourism. ť

One of the participants, Vida Ungar, described the workshop as a great success: 

‘The excellent themes and even better leaders delighted our interpretation clan who were just waiting for the chance to learn from and enjoy the inspirational company. The workshop gave us an excellent introduction into the noble skill of heritage interpretation as well as a powerful incentive for the creative involvement of the connections of heritage in the life of the community ť.

Ivana Jagić is a museologist and heritage manager from Zagreb, Croatia. Since 2013 she has been working in Muses Ltd consulting and management in culture and tourism, as a museologist and interpretation planner. She is the Association Secretary for Interpret Croatia and has been a member of Interpret Europe since 2016. She can be contacted at: ivana.jagic@muze.hr.

To cite this article:
Jagić Boljat, Ivana (2018) ˜Learning about interpretation in Ĺ ibenik, Croatia ˜. In Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2018, 24.
Available online:
www.interpret-europe.net/fileadmin/Documents/publications/Newsletters/ie-newsletter_2018-4_winter.pdf