At The Heritage Management Organization we are expanding our training offer and making our training expertise available to all at their own time  with the launch of the HERITΛGE Online Academy.  The Academy makes our specialist training available through flexible, self-paced online courses in heritage management. 

Developing your skills should be possible alongside the demands of your work and everyday life. You can now choose a course, enrol directly without an interview, and work through the learning materials at times that suit you. There are no scheduled classes to attend: you decide when to study within your course’s access period.

For those already familiar with HERITΛGE’s trainer-led online workshops, the Academy offers a new way to learn. It complements our existing training programmes with courses you can take independently, without waiting for a workshop date or coordinating your schedule with live sessions.

Practical knowledge for your heritage work

The Academy offers courses and programmes across six subject areas to start with, all with heritage organizations and sensitivities in mind, curated jointly by our international faculty and the organization’s education team:

• Heritage interpretation: explore how to communicate heritage through engaging narratives, talks and walks.
• Principles in Heritage conservation: understand conservation principles, values, ethics and professional collaboration.
• Project management: build knowledge across the project cycle, including planning, budgeting, risk management and grant applications.
• Strategic planning: strengthen your approach to setting priorities and making organisational decisions.
• Human resource management: explore the challenges of managing people and volunteers in heritage organisations.
• Climate change adaptation: understand climate-related threats to cultural heritage and their implications for conservation and management.

Whether you care for a heritage site, work in a museum or cultural organisation, contribute to a community initiative, or want to develop your professional skills, the Academy offers opportunities to expand and deepen your knowledge.

Courses developed by specialists combine focused content with learning outcomes relevant to heritage practice. Affordable options allow you to choose training that addresses your interests and needs, while organisations can explore opportunities to support the development of their teams.

These courses can also function as a project management tool, around the work that you are currently doing. Use each section for doing the relevant work, or thinking around that topic and move forward as you make progress in your work.

Explore the course descriptions, choose the subject that matters to you, and check the study time and access details before enrolling.

Build your heritage skills. Learn at your own pace.

Explore the HERITΛGE Online Academy

The Heritage Management Organization (HERITΛGE) marked this year’s European Heritage Days by joining our fellow consortium partners and hundreds of cultural heritage and climate professionals, researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders from around the world for the launch of the European Partnership for Resilient Cultural Heritage (RCH) in Marseille, France. RCH is co-funded by the European Union. 

With the 2026 European Heritage Days theme, “Heritage at Risk: Revive, Resist, Reimagine,” the gathering offered a timely opportunity to turn attention towards the future of heritage in a changing climate—and the role heritage itself can play in helping communities adapt.

The successful kick-off event, organised by RCH coordinators Fondation des sciences du patrimoine on 29 September 2026, brought together participants in Marseille and online to explore RCH’s ambitions and opportunities for collaboration. Alongside the public launch, meetings of the RCH Executive Board and Partnership Assembly provided opportunities for consortium members to advance their shared work and help shape the initiative’s next steps.

The Kick off event took place at Musée des civilisations de l’Europe et de la Méditerranée (Mucem) and the neighbouring Cosquer Méditerranée which hosted the panels. We extend our warm thanks to both venues, Mucem for organising the event, and the team at Cosquer Méditerranée for stepping in on the day of the launch when disruption caused by strike action in France required additional support. Their responsiveness and hospitality helped make the event a success. The Partnership Assembly came together at the Pharo Campus of the Aix Marseille University with which RCH signed an MoU for cooperation. 

HERITΛGE was represented by its Director, Dr. Evangelos Kyriakidis,  our Communications Lead, Maria Kagkelidou and Roula Gika, our Chief Administrative Officer.

Co-funded by the European Union, RCH brings together more than 90 partners from 30 countries in a ten-year collaboration connecting cultural heritage and climate research. It will support transnational research, strengthen cooperation and help translate knowledge into practical responses to climate change. Its ambition encompasses both protecting heritage from climate impacts and understanding how heritage, traditional knowledge and communities can contribute to adaptation.

HERITΛGE leads the Partnership’s communication, dissemination and exploitation efforts, helping its activities, findings and opportunities reach the people and organisations who can use them. We also contribute to mapping activities and to the development of the Partnership’s capacity-building programme for the coming decade.

That work is swiftly moving from discussion to delivery with the first RCH Seasonal School being delivered by HERITΛGE in Athens and online from 5 to 15 October 2026. Titled Heritage Adaptation to Climate Change, the School will bring together 15 participants in person and more than 100 online for an intensive programme connecting climate science with cultural heritage management. It is the culmination of HERITΛGE’s long standing commitment to climate change adaptation and mitigation for cultural and natural heritage and is led by Dr. Kyriakidis, Professor Peter Brimblecombe, and Dr. Jenny Richards. Through lectures, workshops, field visits and project-based learning, participants will explore climate-related risks and develop approaches to adapting heritage to a changing environment.

We thank our partners from around the world for joining us for the launch of RCH and supporting this major initiative as well as the Seasonal School. 

By Eirini Oikonomidi, Rwanda Projects Manager

During the recent, nearly month-long visit to Rwanda, two successful and highly engaged workshops were conducted under the theme: “Engaging Communities in Cultural Heritage.” The training gathered 37 heritage practitioners who offered valuable insights, exchanged knowledge, and shared on-the-ground experience.

The workshops were led by Lena Stefanou and Aris Anagnostopoulos, whose expertise guided participants through practical strategies for community involvement.

The first workshop took place in the southwestern region of Rwanda, in Nyamasheke. This location was strategically chosen because the area is considerably more remote from Kigali, marking a significant step in expanding our programme’s on-site presence. Partnering with IVOMO, who provided crucial organisation and coordination support, the workshop focused intensely on local needs and specific challenges faced by communities in the Great Lakes region. The week spent in this tropical landscape underscored the importance of reaching remote areas to ensure a broad national impact.

Following the Nyamasheke session, the second workshop was hosted in Kigali, the capital of the country. This session broadened the discussion to encompass a wider range of stakeholders, organisations, and dynamic national applications. Our essential partner, the Rwanda Cultural Heritage Academy (RCHA), as always, provided excellent logistical support, including the necessary room and materials at the Kandt House Museum.

Ultimately, both intensive workshops provided fertile ground for the exchange of knowledge, the development of strategies, and the reinforcement of the role of local communities in the protection, preservation, and utilisation of cultural heritage as a driver for sustainable development.

Field Visits and Strategic Engagement

Following the successful completion of the workshops, the remaining weeks of the mission were dedicated to crucial field visits and high-level stakeholder meetings across Rwanda. As the Country Manager, I embarked on an extensive schedule to personally visit projects on the ground, covering a significant geographical expanse—from the tranquil shores of Lake Kivu in the west, across to the Ngoma District in the east, and down into the Southern Province.

This commitment to comprehensive on-the-ground presence yielded two vital outcomes for both our organisation and our local partners.

First, for me, the visits provided a vastly improved and granular understanding of the actual situation. Observing the projects firsthand allowed me to gain immediate clarity on their evolution, their current state, the specific difficulties local teams face, and their overall trajectory. This practical insight is indispensable for effective strategic planning.

Second, the impact on our local partners and the communities themselves was equally profound. By prioritising this on-site presence, we achieved a deeper connection that served to empower the local teams significantly. Our physical presence demonstrated a genuine interest and commitment, signaling the high value we place on their efforts and achievements. We had the opportunity to meet the dedicated individuals face-to-face, fostering stronger personal and professional relationships that reinforce the communities’ sense of ownership and dedication to the long-term sustainability of their cultural heritage work.

In short, these field visits transformed our theoretical understanding into tangible knowledge, strengthening both our project oversight and the foundational local partnerships necessary for lasting impact in Rwanda.

*** The visit and workshops are part of HERITΛGE’s HerMaP Africa initiative, generously supported by the Mellon Foundation.

From 8 to 11 October 2025, The Heritage Management Organization (HERITΛGE) participated in the 7th Cultural Sustainable Tourism (CST) Conference, hosted in the historic cities of Aswan and Luxor, Egypt. The event brought together experts from across the globe to explore how cultural tourism can foster authentic exchanges, strengthen communities, and advance sustainable development through heritage.

Representing HERITΛGE, Denise Navarro Becerra, Program Manager for M Gambia, presented the paper:“Strengthening Local Capacities for Cultural Tourism Development: The HerMaP Gambia Initiative (2020–2025)”.

 

The presentation highlighted how the EU-funded initiative supported peer-led capacity building, institutional partnerships, and community-based tourism development in The Gambia demonstrating HERITΛGE’s methodology for building locally rooted, sustainable heritage systems.

The CST 2025 program addressed some of the most pressing challenges in heritage and tourism today. Sessions were organized under themes such as:

• Bridging Past and Present: Valuation and Interpretation of Tangible and Intangible Heritage
• Community, Culture, and Local Engagement in Tourism
• From Stones to Stories: Negotiating Tangible and Intangible Heritage Across Continents
• Cultural Heritage, Identity & Interpretation

 

Presenters included researchers and practitioners from Italy, Portugal, Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Taiwan, the Philippines, Mexico, Georgia, and beyond, reflecting the global scope of the dialogue and the relevance of cultural tourism across diverse contexts.

While in Egypt, the HERITΛGE team also had the pleasure of reconnecting with Dr. Hassan Refaat, HERITΛGE fellow and grant awardee, whose ongoing work continues to contribute meaningfully to sustainable heritage development in the region.

HERITΛGE received strong interest from institutions and professionals seeking future collaboration, particularly on integrating heritage training, community engagement, and tourism development. The conference provided a valuable opportunity to share lessons from the HerMaP Gambia initiative and reaffirm HERITΛGE’s commitment to co-creating sustainable, community-led heritage programs in Africa and globally.

HERITΛGE recently hosted an online workshop on Community and Economic Development, bringing together 20 heritage managers from 16 countries across Africa and Asia. The three-day intensive training aimed to strengthen participants’ understanding of how cultural heritage can be mobilised for sustainable economic benefit while supporting community development.

The programme was designed to provide heritage managers worldwide with a firm understanding of the motivations for mobilising cultural resources for economic benefit, the limits of that mobilisation, different strategies for creating economic benefits, and how economic impacts are measured and communicated. Participants were guided through the process of developing plans for their own case studies, including goal setting, strategy selection, assessing economic feasibility, and establishing monitoring and evaluation procedures.

The workshop was led by Dr Paul Burtenshaw and Athena Yannitsas. Dr Burtenshaw is a specialist in heritage economics, heritage tourism, and the relationship between cultural heritage and sustainable community development. He has worked on heritage and tourism projects in a range of countries, focusing on how economic approaches can support long-term preservation and local benefit. Athena Yannitsas, Intercultural Initiatives Manager at HERITΛGE, works on programme development, training facilitation, and cross-cultural collaboration. Her work helps align HERITΛGE’s activities with the cultural contexts of diverse communities. Together, they guided participants through a structured and practical learning process linking economic concepts with real-world application.

The Tutor’s approach to stimulate “Thinking outside the box” ideas among participants to brainstorm, identify, develop, scale-up and enhance economic resilience and profitability of the Cultural Heritage.

Paul Phiri / Executive Director at PAZESA Horticultural Community

In total, the course involved 18 capacity-building cases and 19 case studies across two continents, with participants representing a wide range of organisations from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda, and Zambia.

Throughout the workshop, participants examined how cultural heritage can serve as an economic asset while ensuring that local communities benefit directly. Sessions covered the main sources of income in heritage, such as public funding, donations, and commercialisation, and discussed approaches to integrating sustainability within these models. A particular focus was placed on addressing local needs and priorities, including job creation, cultural preservation, and youth engagement.

Participants also explored ways to generate economic impact through cultural tourism and artisan production, analysing both the opportunities and challenges of these approaches. Further sessions addressed business viability and sustainability, including market-driven product development, audience segmentation, and the five Ps of marketing. Practical exercises on costing and financial planning helped participants assess the feasibility of their proposed initiatives.

Paul was such a great instructor, got me thinking about many things, especially in skills development, capacity building and governance. Hearing his experiences enriched the course. The session on M&E is particularly something that I have struggled with and I have learnt to keep the tools simple and to invent my own to suit my projects.

Margaret Dear Kasande-Köbel / Crafts Manager at Rwenzori Sustainable Trade Centre Limited

The final part of the training focused on capacity building and long-term sustainability, highlighting the importance of developing skills and confidence within communities to manage heritage enterprises independently. The course concluded with a session on monitoring and evaluation, which covered how to design measurable indicators, track progress, and use data to improve project outcomes.

By the end of the workshop, participants had developed frameworks outlining their project goals, strategies, and measures of success, supporting the implementation of sustainable economic development initiatives in their respective contexts.

For more information about HERITΛGE’s workshops, go to our open courses page, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter / X, LinkedIn or Instagram.

We are delighted to invite you to the closing presentation of the International Summer School on Engaging Communities in Cultural Heritage, taking place on Sunday, July 6, 2025, at 20:00, at the Dimitrakopoulos Building in Paroikia, Paros.

Over the past two weeks, a dynamic group of heritage professionals and students from around the world has been working closely with the island’s local communities. Through hands-on fieldwork and ethnographic research, they’ve explored how communities engage with their cultural heritage and how local initiatives contribute to its preservation and promotion.

This special event will showcase the results of their field research, offering insights into the role that local voices play in shaping the narratives and practices of heritage management. It is an opportunity to hear directly from participants about their experiences, findings, and reflections—and to learn how community engagement can enrich the global conversation around cultural heritage.

Now in its second year of in-person implementation on the island, the program places special emphasis on interaction with local cultural organizations. A central aim of the Summer School is to highlight, through the educational process, the work of local cultural institutions as case studies that can enrich the international dialogue on the protection and promotion of cultural heritage.

The Summer School is made possible thanks to the generous support of the Municipality of Paros, which has provided access to local venues, including the Dimitrakopoulos Building and the Municipal Library.

We warmly invite local residents, cultural professionals, and visitors to join us for this celebratory and insightful evening. Come meet the next generation of heritage managers, discover the rich cultural fabric of Paros through fresh perspectives, and take part in a growing dialogue on how communities shape their heritage futures.

Date: Sunday, July 6, 2025
Time: 20:00
Location: Dimitrakopoulos Building, Paroikia, Paros

We look forward to seeing you there!