updated October 2009
OBITUARY - FRANCIS NOEL- BAKER
ECOVAST salutes the memory of its Founder President, Francis Noel-Baker, who died on 25 September at the age of 89. As a former British Member of Parliament and owner of a rural estate in Greece, he was acutely aware of the threats to the heritage and the economy of rural areas throughout Europe. He took the lead in creating ECOVAST in 1984, and maintained a keen interest in our work despite his failing health.
ECOVAST GENERAL ASSEMBLY 2009
This year’s General Assembly will be held in Lovran, Istria, Croatia, on SUNDAY 25 October, following a two day conference (23/24 October) in nearby Moscenice on “Revitalisation of Historical Small Towns and their Hinterland”.
Full details of the conference can be found at http://maligradovi.pbworks.com where the programme, a conference registration form and other information can be found in English as well as Croatian. The conference fee is 40 euros if booked by 15 September; after that, 55 euros. ECOVAST Working Groups will meet if there is demand for this.
A form will be sent to ECOVAST members asking them to indicate their attendance, to facilitate arrangements for the Assembly, but bookings for the conference should be made direct to the organisers as indicated on the application form. Further information, such as on accommodation and meals, will be available later, and will be sent to anyone who has expressed interest.
Non - members are very welcome to attend these events. Please contact the Secretary General, Pam Moore if you would like more details to be sent to you at e mail – pam.moore59@ntlworld.com)
Our latest Newsletter, Issue 43, is available in full to members. However, extracts are given here:
REPORTS FROM NATIONAL SECTIONS edited by Pam Moore
At our recent International Committee meeting, information was received about activity in a number of ECOVAST Sections. We have since received one additional report, from Romania.
AUSTRIA – Arthur Spiegler reported on the event in April in Grieskirchen (see separate report) and on the European Landscape Convention event he had attended in Nove Hrady, Czech Republic in May. He also told the meeting about a pilot project on landscape identification with school pupils, which will commence in the Autumn, and be funded by the authorities in Lower Austria. In 2010 ECOVAST Austria will have been operation for 12 years, and hope to mark this milestone.
CROATIA – Valerija Kelemen Pepeonik reported on the Croatian Rural Development network (website: www.hmrr.hr) She explained that this was one for NGOs not the Government sponsored one with which Michael Dower has been assisting. Valerija also described a project in Zagorja – the Bednja project which was helping to improve tourism. ECOVAST Croatia was involved, as were students doing research on land use; it was hoped to have a seminar working with the Ministry of Culture. The Section’s work with Samobor- the problems in the industrial zone of the old town - continues; the spatial plan is now done, which it is hoped will help, if not resolve the matter.
GERMANY – Pam summarised a report received from Angus Fowler. He had provided details of the Section activities during 2008; the German Section GA for 2009 had been held in April in Schleswig Holstein. It was understood that an event would be held in September in Magdeburg; Olaf Linke was arranging the Section’s participation in this.
ROMANIA – Magdalena Banu writes that ECOVAST Romania members have been active in a number of projects in Prahova District. Having completed the rebuilding of an 18th century house in the village of Bertea, with the local community directed by a young and very enthusiastic Mayor, they collected many ethnographic objects which will form a collection for a village museum which will be a point of attraction for the agro tourism of the area. The Section has gained EU funding for the restoration of the old Varbila Monastery to become a centre to train guides specialising in cultural and religious rural tourism. ECOVAST Romania members prepared the restoration plans, have undertaken the Project Co-ordination on site, and arranged for the training to take place. Funds have also been secured for the total restoration of the Monastery of Apostolache where ECOVAST and the Union of the Restorers of the Historic buildings of Romania will organize a School of traditional restoration methods. Craftsmen from the surrounding villages will be used, and the students will come from the villages of all countries. In the commune of Brazi preparation has begun for an application for European structural funds for the restoration and conversion of Nicolau Manor as a sociocultural centre. There will be space for exhibitions, for conferences, meeting and concerts, offering a centre promoting the area’s rural tourism for sustainable development. Around the manor will be a complex comprising an aquaparc, a covered amphitheatre, and a 40 room hotel.) ECOVAST accepted the invitation of the Brazi Municipality to take part as a partner for all this work.
Russia – Olga Sevan had sent a report. Russian ECOVAST had recently completed an interdisciplinary monograph “Socio-cultural development of the territories: problems and solutions” (600 pages, photos, drawings), for which Olga was the main Editor which it is hoped to publish in 2010. Two Section members had given papers on small towns’ themes at a recent ICOMOS event in Umbria, Italy; the “Scientific Symposium on Small Towns and Villages and on Risk Preparedness”. An expedition had been made in Archangel Region to study wooden churches and other buildings; reports would be prepared. Olga also advised of the Section’s expressions of concern about the damage to historic monuments following this year’s earthquake in Italy, and regarding the proposal to erect a tower adjacent to the Cathedral at Tournai, Belgium and the “Gas-Prom” proposal in St. Petersburg, Russia
Slovakia – Eva Kralova’s report advised that the Section had been engaged in considerable activity with small towns and villages, and worked in collaboration with organisations and Universities. The Section Committee kept previous contacts as well as making new links with the local authorities of villages and small towns which showed interest in co-operating in the field of local development programming. There had been very good results of collaboration with the towns Poprad and Spisska Bela in the region of High Tatras. Further good practice was achieved with the town of Sahy, a small town on the Slovak-Hungarian border in the south of Slovakia, as well as with the village of Hervartov (east Slovakia, from 2008 on the UNESCO World Heritage List) and the village of Spania Dolina in middle Slovakia.
In all these cases, the goal was to introduce the ECOVAST strategy into the practice of local development. This had been realised in collaboration with local associations, volunteers and students of various universities (Faculty of Architecture in Bratislava, Faculty of Economy of Banska Bystrica and University of Agriculture of Nitra).
The Section hoped to produce a book on small towns in the near future, “Small Towns and the Factors of their development - the development strategies and instruments based on the local natural and cultural heritage” which would draw on good practice in Slovakia, Poland, Italy and Slovenia, and were hoping that their Section initiatives would help to increase membership.
UK – Pam Moore mentioned that ECOVAST UK would be collaborating in September with Europa Nostra UK for a visit to Northern Ireland., which might enable ECOVAST to recruit additional members there. ECOVAST had recently gained some new members in the UK, notably the National Trust. Pam was working with Civilscape to revise the joint event with ECOVAST in NW England and SW Scotland in Spring 2010 (anyone interested please contact Pam).
Report on FOURTH SMALL TOWNS’ SYMPOSIUM, GRIESKIRCHEN, AUSTRIA by Phil Turner
The Austrian Section of ECOVAST hosted the 4th International Symposium on Small Towns in Grieskirchen, Upper Austria, on the theme "Relations between Small Towns and their Hinterland", attended by participants from many parts of Europe.
Earlier Symposia in the series have been:
- 1998 the “1st Small Town Symposium” in Murau, Styria - Small Towns as the Motors of Rural Development;
- 2002 the “2nd Small Town Symposium” in Waidhofen, Lower Austria The main topic was electronic networks in rural small towns;
- 2005 the 3rd symposium was held in the wine town Retz, Lower Austria, proposed and organised by SEEDA (South East England Development Agency). From this the “ASSET-project” was born.
Thursday 23rd April was a day of excursions, starting with a guided walk through the town of Grieskirchen and followed by a coach tour to see the landscape, with fruit trees in blossom. We were particularly impressed with leadership of the young lady mayor in the robust and authentic restoration of the castle of Tollet, now functioning as the offices of the small municipality and also as a museum, uniquely themed on photographic history, using the latest technology of imagery as well as displaying cameras and projectors through the decades.
Grieskirchen has a population 4,800, within a municipality of many hamlets totaling 42,000 people. The outskirts of the town are dominated by the impressive modern premises of agricultural machinery producer Pöttinger, with products stored in the open ready for export. We discussed the relationship between the urban enterprise and the management of the landscape by machines, as well as the dependency upon one major employer.
Secondary education, for pupils beyond the age of eleven is a significant indicator of the function of a town as a hub serving a hinterland, or catchment. It was pleasing, therefore, to see the nearly completed ‘school centre’.
We appreciated excellent food at Mostheurigen (a local cider station of restored timber and stone buildings arcaded around a courtyard). At Gallspach the large modern wooden church was breathtaking. We saw the historic village church of Oberwödling with a striking view over the landscape patchwork of fields, fruit and other plantation trees.
Arriving for the evening buffet, we were welcomed by a fanfare of brass horns by a troupe of musicians in traditional costume and enjoyed a performance by a school choir.
On the second day, the Symposium, there were greetings from the Mayoress of the Town, Governor Pühringer of Upper Austria and ECOVAST International President, Mrs Tihana Stepinac Fabijanic, and an excellent opening performance by pupils of the music school.
The Keynote lecture by Franz Grossauer (University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna) was entitled “The town and its hinterland – a very familiar relation”. “The Town in a European View“ was presented by Alexander FERSTL, of the General Directorate of Regional Policy, Brussels. Village & town renewal of Upper Austria: “Vital Town Centres, the basis for vibrant Small Towns” was described by Wolfgang Danninger, “Architectural Heritage as a Factor of Economy” was the topic of Georg Spiegelfeld, of the Department of Culture of Upper Austria.
After a briefing on the ASSET Project (Action to Strengthen Small European Towns) from Pam Moore and Phil Turner, Arthur Spiegler (ECOVAST Austria) introduced the parallel discussions:
In plenary, Sylvia Meyer and Gerhard L. Fasching, ECOVAST Austria, presented their emerging work on the Small Town Register of Austria.
The ECOVAST Austria team, including Franz Nahrada and Brigitte Macaria, as well as Arthur and Gerhard, are to be congratulated on their successful symposium.