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What are the challenges heritage professionals face in developing inclusive and participatory approaches to heritage interpretation? HERITΛGE is a proud partner in EMPATHS, a project co-funded by the European Union to enhance community participation in heritage interpretation and empower heritage professionals.

In the framework of the project, HERITΛGE and the Ethnological Museum of Thrace facilitated two recent co-design sessions held in Alexandroupoli and Rizía, Greece, that explored the realities faced by heritage professionals and cultural organisations in developing inclusive, community-based approaches to heritage interpretation.

In Alexandroupoli, the team worked with Dromeas Thrace, a local group that emphasised the potential of experiential walks that combine local storytelling, well-being, and cultural identity. However, they also highlighted the need for clearer participatory methods, improved internal coordination, and better tools for managing community input.

In Rizía,  the local Educational and Cultural Association raised concerns about sustaining volunteer-led initiatives and involving younger generations. Key challenges included a lack of collaboration among local groups, limited access to digital tools, and insufficient training in project design, memory work, and heritage interpretation.

The sessions confirmed the importance of working with existing community strengths while introducing practical tools to ensure sustainable participation. These insights will directly shape the EMPATHS training model, helping to support more inclusive, locally grounded approaches to heritage interpretation across Europe.

The findings of these sessions, as well as a series of others being run by our partners around Europe, are directly informing the EMPATHS training programme scheduled for release in 2026. Find our more on the EMPATHS website.

 

At HERITΛGE we are happy to share the publication of the EMPATHS Baseline Report, the first major milestone of the EMPATHS project (EMpowering landscapes with Participatory Approaches To Heritage interpretation Skills). EMPATHS is funded by the Erasmus+ programme  and its foundational report provides a comprehensive overview of the current practices, challenges, and opportunities in the field of participatory heritage interpretation, serving as a critical resource for heritage professionals, community leaders, and cultural organisations.

As the first step in the EMPATHS project, this baseline report lays the groundwork for developing a new methodological framework that empowers heritage professionals to engage more effectively with local communities. It reflects the core philosophy of the EMPATHS initiative – that heritage is a shared, living resource best understood and interpreted through the active participation of the people who interact with it.

The report, authored by Carmen Granito and Caterina De Vivo from project partner The Story Behind (Italy), draws on extensive desk research and case studies from around the world. It examines the state of participatory heritage interpretation across diverse cultural and geographic contexts, highlighting key trends, best practices, and areas for improvement.

Key Findings from the Baseline

The EMPATHS Baseline reveals that while participatory approaches are increasingly being integrated into heritage interpretation, significant challenges remain. Key findings include:

• A gap in structured competences for participatory approaches among heritage professionals.
• The need to move from expert-led, top-down interpretation models to more community-centred, collaborative approaches.
• The importance of training and capacity building to empower local voices in the interpretation process.
• Examples of successful participatory projects, such as those contributed by project partners, including the Heritage Management Organisation (Greece), Interpret Europe (Germany), PaFleg (Italy), and EMT (Greece).

The EMPATHS Baseline sets the stage for the next phase of the project, which will involve developing a comprehensive methodological framework for participatory heritage interpretation. This framework will aim to bridge the gap in skills and knowledge, helping heritage professionals create more inclusive, locally relevant interpretive strategies that reflect the diverse voices of their communities.

About the EMPATHS Consortium

For the EMPATHS project HERITΛGE has partnered with a diverse consortium of leading heritage organisations, including: The Story Behind (Italy) – lead author of the baseline study, providing critical research and analysis, Interpret Europe (Germany) – known for its pioneering work in heritage interpretation training, PaFleg (Italy) – the The Archaeological Park of Campi Flegrei,  experts in archaeological and cultural heritage management, The Ethnological Museum of Thrace, (Greece) – focused on integrating education and heritage interpretation to foster community engagement and the Karawanken-Karavanke UNESCO Global Geopark (Austria and Slovenia) – Known for its cross-border heritage and geodiversity, this geopark promotes sustainable development and environmental education through heritage interpretation.

To download the EMPATHS Baseline, visit Project Result page.

This project is co-funded by the European Union. 

We are happy to announce a new EU-funded project, EMPATHS (EMpowering landscapes with Participatory Approaches to Heritage interpretation Skills), that aims  to redefine how heritage stories are told and experienced, creating lasting connections between people and places through participatory heritage interpretation (HI). The project is co-funded by the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme and brings together six organizations in four different countries (Austria, Germany, Greece, Italy).  

The project  kicked off during a meeting on December 12-13, 2024, in Berlin where the partners aligned their roles and responsibilities. 

Cultural heritage is a crucial economic and social resource for EU countries .  Community participation to heritage interpretation is an invaluable way to democratize heritage and ultimately foster citizen participation in the enjoyment of heritage and for its contribution to sustainable development. But heritage professionals often  lack the necessary competences, practices and resources to implement participatory HI and ignore its benefits according to research. 

EMPATHS aims to address these challenges by developing a new methodological framework and a new blended professional training programme, methodology and materials for participatory heritage interpretation practice by heritage professionals and local communities. 

The project will support the work of heritage professionals, increase their competences, and support Vocational Educational Training (VET) with a replicable training methodology. Throughout its duration (2024-2027) EMPATHS project will raise awareness of the benefits of participatory heritage interpretation to ultimately foster greater citizen participation.

The EMPATHS consortium features six enthusiastic partners, each of whom brings diverse and valuable skills to the table. HERITΛGE is joined by Interpret Europe, the European association for Heritage Interpretation with more than 1,000 members that also serves a project co-ordinator, The Story Behind, a start-up SME specialising in ethical branding, storytelling and interpretation for heritage and cultural organisations, The Karawanken-Karavanke UNESCO Global Geopark that spans 1,067 km² across Austria and Slovenia, The Ethnological Museum of Thrace in Greece and The Archaeological Park of Campi Flegrei in Italy. 

The team is beginning to conduct interviews with heritage and vocational professionals and is developing a Skills Manifesto to be published in the coming months with a comprehensive training curriculum to follow. These are just the first steps in the EMPATHS project’s journey that will see us explore participatory approaches in heritage interpretation  and promises transformative impacts for both heritage professionals and local communities, fostering inclusivity, co-creation, and sustainability in the heritage sector. By empowering diverse voices and embracing innovative methodologies, EMPATHS aims to redefine how heritage stories are told and experienced, creating lasting connections between people and places.