Join us for iecon24 to discuss and explore how heritage interpretation can change our mindset towards sustainability. You don’t want to miss it!
Our conference team is working away to ensure that we are ready to welcome you to Slovenia for our next conference, Sustainability: Challenging mindsets through heritage interpretation, on 21-24 March 2024.
Slovenia is described as a ‘green jewel in the heart of Europe’, ‘green heaven’, ‘Europe in miniature’, and other similarly poetic expressions. Although it is not located in the geographical centre of the continent, it lies at the intersection of cultures: Latin, German, Slavic and Hungarian worlds. Consequently, its culture and language is a product from this melting pot of all these influences that shaped a unique cultural mixture, resulting in an enormous variety of cultural expressions and dialects in a tiny territory.
The country’s former tourism slogan, ‘On the sunny side of Alps’, revealed its climate and geography. Whereas the current tourism slogan, ‘I feel SLOVEnia’, suggests that you will, too, fall in love with the place. But, away from this romantic poetry, Slovenia can boast about many things: vast areas (64% of its land) covered in forest and one of the most progressive forest management systems, with a fair number of European beasts that have been successfully reintroduced in nature; culinary delights, as diverse as its landscape; high responsibility and respect towards nature and traditional practices; and plenty of heritage jewels along off-the-beaten-track paths that we’ll visit during study visits.
During iecon24 in March, we’ll explore places that can offer the best interpretive experiences in the region. Not only in Slovenia, but also in its neighbours – Croatia and Italy.
Check out our range of interesting study visits: https://www.interpreteuropeconference.net/study-visits/
Travel to and from the conference can be an opportunity to add extra inspiration by connecting further with colleagues, whilst also seeing some of the more well-known and crowded tourist spots. You may join us for an additional tour before or after the conference and joining us for a visit of the capital Ljubljana at your arrival and driving together to Venice on the way home is a good option to experience these two places. However, we’ll not be staying on the usual tourist routes. Our hosts will reveal another side of the story and also talk about sustainability of the places. Find out more here:
https://www.interpreteuropeconference.net/pre-conference-tour/
https://www.interpreteuropeconference.net/post-conference-tour/
We have received a number of very promising abstracts for sessions and workshops that will open discussions at all layers of the conference theme. We will hear about local projects and research findings and discuss successful approaches as well as open questions and challenges. Together, maybe we will find some solutions.
Finally, we are extremely excited about the renowned speakers that will provoke our thoughts each day with their opening keynotes. David Uzzel, a deserving professor and researcher of heritage interpretation has dedicated his latest works to sustainability psychology and will be happy to exchange views with us regarding the potentials and limitations of heritage interpretation in fostering sustainability mindsets. Whereas Lluis Bonet from the University of Barcelona and Špela Spanžel from the Cultural Heritage Directorate Slovenia will highlight our joint endeavors from other angles.
You can find out more about our keynote speakers here: https://www.interpreteuropeconference.net/keynote-speakers/
If you have submitted an abstract for a presentation, you will be hearing from the conference team during January. It is now time to start booking up your place! The early bird discount fees are available until 9 February so don’t delay!
We are looking forward to meeting many of you (again) in March for the next lively Interpret Europe conference!
Bettina Lehnes is IE’s Events Coordinator. You can contact her at: bettina.lehnes@interpret-europe.net.
Helena Vicic is IE’s Managing Director. You can contact her at: helena.vicic@interpret-europe.net.
For all conference enquiries, you can reach the local organising team at: management@interpreteuropeconference.net.
To cite this article: Lehnes, Bettina & Vicic, Helena (2023) ‘Challenge your mindset‘ in Interpret Europe Newsletter 4-2023, pg.6-7.
Available online: https://interpret-europe.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/IE-Newsletter-2023_4-winter.pdf
