Trans-Balkan Cultural Corridor, 2007
This project is a first practical realisation of the Declarations from Varna (2005) and Opatija (2006) concerning the Cultural Corridors of South East Europe. A specific focus of the project is a particular cultural corridor – Trans-Balkan Cultural Road between Greece, Bulgaria and Romania, that connects unique cultural and natural values. The aim of the project if to attain a sustainable development of the regions along the Road through revealing, preserving, sustainable usage and popularization of its values for the development of the integral cultural tourism. In order to achieve this aim, the Association for Cultural Tourism in partnership with the Regional Administration Plovdiv carried out the Regional Forum in Plovdiv: Trans-Balkan Cultural Corridor Greece-Bulgaria-Romania – Shared Heritage and Common European Future (16-17 November 2007), where representatives from the three countries meet consent for common activities. As a result, they nomiated a common project under the European Operational Programme for Transnational Cooperation in South East Europe 2007-2013. In the frames of the project Heritage: ESPRIT, a pilot territory for cultural tourism along the Road in Bulgaria is studied - Rhodopi Cultural Area. With the help of students a series of tourist products are defined. It is expexted the project to contribute for the successive development of the genrel network of Cultural Corridors of South East Europe, in the spirit of the Regional Forums in Varna and Opatija.