Cultural heritage

Last changed: 31 October 2024
Old boat house

Today a lot of the local cultural and historical heritage stays in the local society, hidden from the rest of the world. A lot of the historical remains ie horizontal waterwheel mills and water meadows are remains that are decaying and at risk of completely disappearing from the landscape. Besides the importance, this information has on social sustainability perspective it could be of interest to a wider audience.

The aim is to gather local and historical knowledge from the entrepreneurs and bring this knowledge into regenerative tourism. Forest and agricultural history, reindeer herding, cultural crops, local food culture and traditions, maintenance of natural cultural areas, game management and smuggling in history, sauna culture, legends and customs are all examples of local knowledge.

Timbered hut and old fashioned scythe and other tools

Timbered hutWe want to preserve and highlight the local cultural heritage in our area. In order to do this, we first need to know what exists. Therefore, we are currently interviewing our reference companies in the project to find out what cultural heritage there is in the surroundings and if they incorporate it into their operations.

We are also exploring which areas they would like to learn more about. The idea is to offer courses, excursions and workshops to give the entrepreneurs an opportunity to expand their knowledge in the areas they are interested in. The goal is to help the companies develop tourist offerings that utilize and enrich the cultural heritage of the destinations.

High tree stump with square hole

Timbered hut and old fashioned scythe

Only a few interviews have been conducted so far, but what is clear is that forest history and historical traces in nature are something most of the entrepreneurs would like to learn more about and use in their business.

Text & Photo: Ann Dolling


Contact

Ann Dolling, Researcher
Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Department of Forest Ecology and Management, joint staff
ann.dolling@slu.se, +46706997452