The project “Traditional knowledge for sustainable future” aimed to bring cultural heritage closer to youngsters, provide space to discover the techniques of traditional building, and accent the importance of such opportunities for youngsters, while discovering the cultural heritage of Eastern Kosovo through traditional building.
It started in September 2021, when GAIA initiated a mapping to collect information and data on the current state of cultural heritage and traditional building in the Eastern part of Kosovo (municipalities of Kamenica/Kamenicë, Ranilug/Ranilluk, Novo >Brdo/Novobërdë, Gnjilane/Gjilan…). During the mapping, various locations were visited and the local community shared the stories of the houses they were using. The aim was to document and collect information about the knowledge of traditional building through community engagement, and collecting stories and photography.
During spring and summer 2022 six weekend workshop that gathered 62 participants from all across Kosovo were organized. These activities were an opportunity for them to connect with cultural heritage which is being forgotten, to learn about local and natural building materials and to create something together.
Each workshop focused on a specific traditional building technique and the participants learned about them through theory and practice. The participants learned how to build natural wattle fences and traditional bread oven, as well as making adobe bricks, plastering with earth and practicing traditional carpentry.
After the workshops, a week-long training about traditional building, including theory and practice gathered 6 youngsters, and they got a chance to dive deeper into the topic as well as try out different techniques and visit important cultural heritage in the Eastern part of Kosovo.
During the project implementation, a report on cultural heritage, traditional building and mapping was developed. It is available in:
- Albanian,
- Serbian and
- English languages.
The photography and stories collected were also gathered in a form of a wall calendar that was made for the year 2023.
And finally, posters on traditional building techniques as well as the workshops that took place during the project were made.
The project implemented by NGO GAIA “Traditional knowledge for sustainable future” is part of the financial grant “Cultural Heritage as a Driver for Intercommunity Dialogue and Social Cohesion” project financed by the European Union Service for Foreign Policy Instrument (FPI) and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The material was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of NGO GAIA and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union and the implementing partner United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
