On Wednesday 25 January, the 3rd Transnational Meeting of the project “U-Mar – Enhancing underwater archaeology to make it an innovative tool for development Sustainable & Creative Tourism” took place in Cadiz (Spain), at the headquarters of the partner International Campus of Excellence of the Sea (CEIMAR).
The project, led by the Phoenicians’ Route – Council of Europe Cultural Route, is funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.
The project, led by the Phoenicians’ Route – Council of Europe Cultural Route, is funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.
The meeting served to present in detail the work done to realise and complete the output of PR1 (an innovative course on the enhancement and communication of underwater archaeological heritage) and to show the final result, as well as to define the common structure to be followed in the national On-site trainings, which will be implemented in each country before summer 2023, to test the training course. In addition, the state of the art of the E-learning platform (PR2) was presented and the common approach for the creation of the Interpretation/Learning Centres (PR3) was discussed. At the end of the meeting, the videos planned and connected to PR1 were recorded, to be later entered into the e-learning platform. This meeting was also an opportunity to take stock of ongoing communication activities and financial management and reporting procedures, to answer any doubts of partners.
The general aim of the project U-Mar is to develop the knowledge and the enhancement of heritage related to underwater archaeology, through the following specific objectives:
1) Training professional figures with specific skills in underwater archaeology, specifically for the promotion and management of cultural sites;2) Developing sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism based on underwater archaeology, improving the tourist-cultural offer and expanding the target of users;
3) Providing the organisations aiming to develop strategies with guidelines for the enhancement of underwater archaeological heritage, with different possibilities of application depending on the context. Particular attention will be dedicated to the creation of underwater archaeological itineraries, with their specific heritage and to the professional’s skills required;
4) Increasing the knowledge of underwater archaeological heritage and the importance of its conservation and enhancement, not only by tourists, but above all by young people and local communities living in those territories.
The partners had the opportunity to visit the CEIMAR headquarters, the Centre of Underwater Archaeology, the Archaeological Museum of Cadiz and the archaeological area of ancient Gadir, as well as the beautiful city center.
Next meeting in Pafos (Cyprus) in mid-June.
