2nd Call Grants Projects

  1. The “DigiCult-Tour’‘ project aims to support local communities and public institutions by offering new cultural and heritage routes, encompassing ten sites of significant interest. Additionally, the project includes the creation of five authentic souvenir prototypes crafted by local artisans, all aimed at boosting sustainable tourism in the city of Mirdita. This initiative will benefit the Municipality of Mirdita, as well as the administrative units of Rubik, Rreshen, Orosh, Kthellë, along with local and national tour operators and businesses. Implemented by CEAPAL – Albanian Center for Education, Tourism, and Entrepreneurship, the project received a grant amounting $47,695.91 USD (approximately 43,373 Euro) and will span ten months. Its mission is to enhance cultural appreciation, provide economic opportunities for artisans, and promote sustainable tourism in the region. 

  1. The project “Local Cuisine Preservation as an Investment for the Future and Tourism Offer of Mirdita” aims to breathe new life into rural communities of Mirdita by leveraging their local resources and generating income through tourism. Through comprehensive field research, they will uncover age-old, traditional recipes and offer them to local hotels and restaurants. This initiative seeks to authentically represent the local cultural heritage through the richness of its cuisine, culminating in the creation of a guidebook and a promotional video, enriching the overall tourism experience and providing guests with insights into local traditions through gastronomy. With the involvement of private businesses, rural families, tourism entrepreneurs, and all 37,384 inhabitants of the Mirdita Municipality, this project holds the potential to empower the community and contribute to the sustainable growth of the region. Implemented by ANEI NGO, the project will span 10 months, supported through a EU4Culture grant of 49,498.00 USD (approximately 45,011 Euro). 

  1. The project “Sustainable Tourism Development of Mirdita through the Promotion of Culture Heritage” aims to raise awareness of the pivotal role cultural heritage plays in driving sustainable economic development. The initiative will also focus on empowering youth and women by providing them with training in traditional skills and tour guiding. Moreover, it will breathe new life into traditional handcraft activities, ensuring their preservation for future generations. To enhance visitor experiences, the project will establish information boards at key cultural and historic sites in the area. Additionally, it will showcase the richness of the region through an agritourism and handcraft fair featuring local products, celebrating the authenticity and diversity of Mirdita’s heritage. Implemented by Milieukontakt Albania, the project spans 12 months, and is supported through the EU4Culture grant of $49,245.00 USD (approximately 44,781 Euro).

  1. The project “Albanian Youth – the Future of Culture Heritage” is dedicated to empowering, inspiring and engaging the youth in the preservation and conservation of Albanian cultural heritage. One of our key initiatives involves creating a restoration manual, guiding step by step through the restoration process of valuable artefacts. Additionally, it will conduct engaging workshops in schools, raising awareness about the richness of Albanian cultural heritage and fostering a sense of pride and responsibility in Albanian youth. To provide hands-on experience, it will organise on-site visits of pupils at the Archaeological Institute, where they can explore and appreciate our archaeological treasures up close. Furthermore, the project will support the preservation of artefacts in the city of Durrës by identifying and cataloguing damaged items in need of restoration.  Implemented by the TED Center, the project spans 10 months and is supported  through the EU4Culture grant of $49,010.00 USD (approximately 44,568 Euro).

  1. The project “FIND YOUR OWN ROOTS‘‘ aims to empower the younger generation through a unique blend of traditional clothing and handicrafts techniques in the context of tourism. The project will provide professional training activities, guiding young artisans towards self-employment and preserving cultural heritage. The key activities include the establishment of an Artisan Lab, where five original traditional garments will be reconstructed, inspiring the creation of a clothing and accessories collection featuring over 100-year-old authentic elements. Additionally, a ten-day workshop will be organized, engaging 20 talented students in crafting 20 modern folk products. To promote and showcase the products, five Artisan Corners will be established, offering a glimpse into the artistry of the atelier. Led by Foundation ”Tradita Popullore”, this project spans 8 months and is supported through a EU4Culture grant of $48,524.50 USD (approximately 45,075 Euro).

  1. The “Kruja COOLtour” project aims to promote equal opportunities and inclusion of low-skilled and unemployed women and young people in Kurcaj Village and Kruja town through training activities and mentoring in becoming local hiking tours entrepreneurs in particular for the Kurcaj – Kruja touristic path. They will also mediate with touristic agencies to employ the trained guides, organise culture-based tours and creative workshops connected to local resources, skills and cultural heritage around the Kurcaj area and the Ethnographic Museum of Kruja, present a new cultural and natural route as well as design digital products for visitors including apps for children’s learning. This project is being implemented by Partnerë për Fëmijët  with a duration of 10 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of  $33,600.00 USD (approximately 30,554 Euro).

  1. The “Cultour: Cultural Heritage Promotion through Creative and Experimental Tourism” project aims to revitalise the local crafts and promote sites of cultural importance in Mirdita. It will engage directly with artisans, with a focus on women and representatives of vulnerable groups, supporting them through networking and training activities in order to develop sustainable business models. It will also identify new local sites of cultural importance, digital signposting of identified sites and sharing information online as well as cooperate with tourism operators to integrate them into dedicated tourism itineraries, thus offering opportunities for growth in an underdeveloped sector. This project is being implemented by Art Kontakt with a duration of 10 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of 44,590.00 USD (approximately 40,548 Euro).

  1. The “REVIVE THE PAST TO DRIVE THE FUTURE – Boosting cultural roots through all-inclusive, gender, environmentally-friendly digital and analogue approach” project will support the preservation and potential of Kavaja tangible and intangible cultural heritage by designing digital cultural heritage products, developing a wheelmap, conducting study visits to five sites and organising clean-up actions linking cultural heritage with environment protection and social inclusion.  All initiatives aim to create lasting results combining storytelling, traditional costumes and songs with cultural heritage sites in Kavaja. The development of digital products will be carried out by a diverse working group coming from civil society, institutions, and field experts. This project is being implemented by Qendra për Zhvillim Komunitar with a duration of 10 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of $49,870.00 USD (approximately 45,350 Euro).

  1. The project “AORTAS – TirAna Open HeRitage CulTure And TouriSm” will establish an integrated online digital heritage platform for Tirana municipality with open access to all visitors. It will provide new opportunities for tour operators and licensed guides to promote their business and enter the global market. A digital heritage catalogue of Tirana will be available online for visitors with information and their geographical position on the map. Local artisans and craftsmen will also have their dedicated digital space to promote their products and expand their network and visibility across the globe. Local tourist agencies, operators and licensed guides will enrich their portfolio with heritage tourist packages, created within the platform, while also offer on-demand touristic itineraries through the itinerary planner functionality of the platform.  Throughout the project implementation, the project team will raise awareness and  increase visibility to ensure project’s results sustainability beyond its lifetime. This project is being implemented by Smart Processes Institute (SPI) with a duration of 12 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of  49,230.00 USD (approximately 45,880.39 Euro).

  1. The project “Cultural Heritage in Young Hands” aims to increase youth engagement in the promotion of cultural heritage by boosting visibility of Kavaja cultural assets and stimulating youth-led public debate. Activities include gap analysis on cultural heritage in Rrogozhina and Kavaja Municipality, development of digital educational kits and preparation of a historical guideline book. This project is being implemented by ‘Mirësia’ Foundation with a duration of 12 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of 48,350.12 USD (approximately 43,968 Euro).

  1. The “I CAN TELL…”  project aims to raise awareness about cultural heritage through training activities with local creatives in expressing their emotions and feelings through innovative art methods. The project team will organise workshops to promote Tirana city’s and tourism values through music, photography, design thinking graphics. It will work closely with 200 youngsters from local communities aged between 19-25 years old  and 50 young independent artists from Tirana, Durrës and Kavaja. This project is being implemented by the Multidisciplinary Art Movement (MAM) Foundation  with a duration of 5 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of 20,000 USD (approximately 17,774 Euro).

  1. The “PromoKULT – Development of cultural tourism of Kavaja Municipality” project aims to increase awareness of cultural tourism in Kavaja through promotional and informational tools. Its activities include the production of the videoclip “Visit Kavaja”, a local tourist brochure, the youth exhibition ‘KavajaBLIC’ and 360-degree VR Tour apps, dedicated to Kavaja’s cultural assets with the objective to reach more than 5000 people from all over the world. This project is being implemented by the Albanian Centre for Family Development (ACFD) with a duration of 4 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of 14,370.00 USD (approximately 12,770 Euro).

  1. The “Culture For Sustainable Development: The Untapped Potential” project will support and encourage young boys and girls, including the Roma community and people with disabilities, on new ways of creating crafts inspired by 47 real life stories of Spaç Prison and the former political prisoners. Youngsters passionate about crafts will produce artisanal wool puppets, portraying prisoners that deserve to be remembered, which will be able to speak phrases recorded from former political prisoners. The project will give an artistic added value to the Spaç Prison through the installation of 47 portraits sculptures of former political prisoners created by young artists, produce podcasts telling their stories, as well as will increase interest to visit this site by organising cultural local fairs, exhibitions and festivals. This project is being implemented by the Tek Bunkeri with a duration of 8 months and with an EU4Culture Contribution of 49,206.76 USD (approximately 44,747 Euro).