More informationProject website:https://www.facebook.com/evsdrystonewallextravaganza/

The Erasmus+ Project Results Platform:http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/projects/eplus-project-details/

Erasmus+

Key facts and figuresErasmus+

Project titleDry Stone Wall Extravaganza 3

Field: YouthAction: Learning Mobility of Individuals

Lead organisationName: Udruga za zastitu prirode i okolisa te promicanje odrzivog razvoja ‘Argonauta’Location: Murter, CroatiaWebsite: http://www.argonauta.hr

PartnersSdruzhenie Alternativi International, Bulgaria; Associazione di promozione sociale Joint, Italy;Semper Avanti Stowarzyszenie, Poland; Asociación Arrabal-AID, Spain;Akdeniz Ucuncu Goz Egitim ve Genclik Dernegi, Turkey

An EU-funded project is protecting an island’s cultural heritage by bringing neglected dry stone walls back to lifeDry stone walls, used as field boundaries for protecting live-stock, are of great importance to Dalmatia’s cultural heritage. These walls have been neglected for years, but the Association for Nature and Environment Conservation (Argonauta) on Croatia’s Murter island took action to protect the walls as well as the techniques used to build them.

Dry Stone Wall Extravaganza 3 was a short-term European Voluntary Service (EVS) project, which involved 15 volunteers from Bulgaria, Italy, Poland, Spain and Turkey.

The project coordinator, Sanja Tabori, from the local NGO Argonauta said:

‘ Volunteers came together for one month to revive these dry stone walls on an archaeological site in Murter, called Colentum.’

The volunteers carried out archaeological excavations on the grounds of a villa rustica, and also cleared the building of bushes and undergrowth. They also renewed 40 metres of a dry stone wall beside Colentum beach and even cre-ated a puppet show for children, to raise awareness of this ancient heritage.

The project underlined how this heritage can trigger the sustainable development of rural communities, while making voluntary work, and made its benefits more visible among the locals.

The experience was an opportunity for the staff at Argonauta to further manage EU projects. ‘It has opened up a new world for us, and we now have the confidence to undertake similar initiatives,’ said Tabori.

While living for one month in an international commu-nity, the volunteers learnt a new craft and brushed up on their English language skills.

Dry stone walls: the building blocks of heritage

Photo: © Argonauta, 2018

Participants:15

Countries:6

EU grant:€ 15,660

Project duration:May 2017- December 2017