Check the List of 32 good practices to be featured in the European online catalogue of good practices “Cultural Heritage in Action”
Cultural heritage empowers cities and regions to strengthen their cultural heritage policies and initiatives as well as develop innovative solutions to preserve cultural heritage assets. Following an open call for contribution launched in February 2020, 32 local and regional practices were selected to be featured in a European catalogue of good practices. The featured practices are policies, projects, events, or organizational structures developed by local and regional authorities. They are implemented by local/regional authorities themselves or by other local stakeholders and: are innovative; are inspiring for other cities and regions; have a real impact on the ground. We are proud to present this catalogue of inspiring stories focusing on three main topics that are interlinked: Participatory governance of cultural heritage; Adaptive reuse of built heritage; Quality of interventions on cultural heritage.
The application for the selection in the programme “Cultural Heritage in Action” has been done by the team of Plovdiv 2019 Foundation and amidst hundreds of candidates, Plovdiv has been chosen to represent Bulgaria.
BLAJ, ROMANIA: REDEVELOPMENT OF HISTORICAL BATHS
Located in the historic centre of Blaj, the building’s rehabilitation is a good practice of architecture sensitive to current urban and functional contexts and to the needs of the public it serves. See more HERE.
BOLOGNA, ITALY: A NEW LIFE FOR PIAZZA ROSSINI – FROM A PARKING LOT TO A PEDESTRIAN GREEN SPACE
The idea of redesigning Piazza Rossini was born during the participatory laboratory ‘U-Lab’. See more HERE.
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY: BUDAPEST 100
Budapest 100 is a community festival developed to reinforce the participatory governance of the city’s heritage. Read more HERE.
CANTABRIA REGION, SPAIN: FROM DOMUS DEI TO DOMUS POPULI
The practice includes the transformation of a religious building (domus Dei) into an inclusive centre (domus populi) to facilitate community encounters and to welcome tourists and pilgrims. See more HERE.
CENTRAL DENMARK: STOL (THE CHAIR PROJECT)
Stol (chair) is an artistic project started by citizens from villages where 70 furniture factories used to produce chairs (only 14 still exist). More information HERE.
DAUGAVPILS, LATVIA: REGENERATION OF THE FORTRESS
The redevelopment of the fortress is a large-scale project that includes a culture and information centre, a new Mark Rothko art centre and new public infrastructure. See more HERE.
DEN BOSCH, THE NETHERLANDS: BULWARK HERITAGE CENTRE
The practice is an excellent example of the quality of intervention and the ambition to transform a former city gate into a departure point for visitors and a new public place for the residents. Read more HERE.
DUBLIN, IRELAND: 14 HENRIETTA STREET
14 Henrietta Street is a new museum of architectural and social history, as told through the walls of the building and the lives of the people who lived in the building. See more HERE.
GLASGOW – CENTRAL SCOTLAND, UK: REDISCOVERING THE ANTONINE WALL
The Antonine wall, a UNESCO world heritage site, runs through many of the most deprived areas of Scotland. The practice focuses on social inclusion, co-development and co-curation. Read more HERE.
GHENT, BELGIUM: CIRCUSKERK CIRCUS AND ACTIVITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE AT RISK
Young people in some areas of Ghent are particularly at risk of social exclusion. Combining meaningful reuse with respect for the monument and for the community around it is a challenge that this practice shows how can be approached in a good way. More information HERE.
GORENJSKA REGION AND SOUTHERN CARINTHIA, SLOVENIA: SLOVENIAN HOUSE AND FIELD NAMES
Through the practice, Slovenian house names (oeconyms) and field names (choronyms) which were relinquishing, were collected and re-used in the every-day life of locals as part of the living cultural heritage. Read more HERE.
HERMOUPOLIS, GREECE: 100 BUILDINGS/ 100 STORIES
The practice combines digital preservation management and a registration system for endangered buildings, with citizens’ telling personal stories about the buildings. See more HERE.
KORTRIJK, BELGIUM: EMMA, THE SMALL GIANT
Emma is a new ‘giant’ designed to revive the traditional giant heritage in Belgium. Read more HERE.
LEUVEN, BELGIUM: INDEPENDENT ART CENTRE OPEK
An entrepot building was turned into an open house for culture and creativity thanks to an innovative funding method – find out more HERE.
LODZ, POLAND: MULTI-GENERATIONAL HOUSE
Developed in a heritage building that had not been renovated for decades, the multi-generational house hosts young families, senior citizens, and common spaces for community activities. See more HERE.
MORAVIAN-SILESIAN REGION, CZECH REPUBLIC: DOLNÍ VÍTKOVICE: TRANSFORMATION OF INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE
The practice is a valuable example of revitalization of an industrial heritage area transformed through a sustainable concept of re-use, with new educational, cultural and social activities. See more HERE.
NANTES, FRANCE: PATRIMONIA
Patrimonia is a digital platform developed and enriched by specialists and citizens’ contributions to provide a permanent space for discovery around the rich and diverse heritage of Nantes. Read more HERE.
OBERHAUSEN, GERMANY: FROM A WATER TOWER TO A COMMUNITY HUB
The practice focuses on the transformation of the water tower of the station (used to bring water to steam trains) into a community hub. More information HERE.
PLOVDIV, BULGARIA: KAPANA CREATIVE DISTRICT
The practice focuses on the transformation of a historical craftsman and artisan trade district into the first Bulgarian creative industries district, hosting creatives in an environment that puts specific attention to the quality of open public spaces. Read more HERE. 
REGGIO EMILIA, ITALY: RENOVATION OF THE CLOISTERS OF SAN PIETRO
This practice is a remarkable example of an integrated project of quality architectural renovation, adaptive re-use and realisation of an open laboratory – an innovation and digital hub for the city. See more HERE.
RÖMERLAND CARNUNTUM, AUSTRIA: SHAPING LIVING SPACES SUSTAINABLY & TOGETHER
The practice revolves around a new methodology for regional planning and building culture in a region with great land use pressure. Find more HERE.
ROTTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS: DIGITUP – DATA COLLECTION GOVERNANCE
This practice facilitates a co-creation of data collection policies and practices which allow for inhabitants of Rotterdam to drive and describe their own cultural heritage. Read more HERE.
SAAREMAA, ESTONIA: SONG AND DANCE CELEBRATION
The tradition of song and dance festivals is very popular in Estonia, and particularly in the Saaremaa island. The practice demonstrates how to make historical cultural heritage popular with young people. See more HERE.
SENIA, SPAIN: ANCIENT OLIVE TREES
The practice is about protecting, conserving, and valuing millennial olive trees, thanks to a coordinated action of the public and private sectors. More information HERE.
ŠIBENIK, CROATIA: FORTRESS OF CULTURE AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
The transformation of the Šibenik fortress (17th century) is not only a remarkable example of re-use of built heritage into a cultural centre. Find out more HERE.
SINTRA, PORTUGAL: PARKS OF SINTRA WELCOME BETTER
The practice focuses on removing barriers to access to heritage buildings and infrastructures and to information in a UNESCO heritage site. See more HERE.
TAMPERE, FINLAND: ADOPT A MONUMENT
Adopt a monument enables citizens to be closely involved in the management, research, valuation, and ownership of their cultural heritage, in the spirit of the Faro Treaty. Read more HERE.
MALTA PLANNING AUTHORITY, MALTA: DOCK 1
Dock 1 is a powerful example of the regeneration of a former dock over 2,5 kilometers in three different cities. See more HERE.
VAL GRANDE NATIONAL PARK, ITALY: COMMONLAND. CULTURAL COMMUNITY MAPPING IN ALPINE AREAS
Commonlands is the result of the efforts of inhabitants from ten mountain communities in a protected area. More information HERE.
VALLETTA, MALTA: TRADITIONAL CLOSED TIMBER BALCONY
The practice is an inspiring example of collaboration between local authorities, heritage professionals and citizens leading to the restoration of more than 4.000 timber balconies. Read more HERE.
VANTAA, FINLAND: INNOVATIVE CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME
The practice is centred around an innovative 10-phase methodology to involve citizens and stakeholders in the co-design of an ambitious environmental urban plan addressing cultural heritage. See more HERE.
WEINVIERTEL OST REGION, AUSTRIA: TOPOTHEQUE
Topotheque is a local, historic search engine presenting 700.000 private entries, crowdsourced under the direction of public bodies in more than 200 local branches. Read more HERE.
See online the CATALOGUE.
The Catalogue in PDF.
More about the initiative HERE.