Project “Creative mountains” presented at the Danilo Re Memorial 2023 

From 19th to 22nd January 2023 the project “Creative mountains” was presented by Association for Nature Conservation Machaon International and the Local action group Kazbegi at the 27th “Danilo Re Memorial” held in the beautiful Italian national park Gran Paradiso. About 240 participants from 7 European countries had the chance to learn about possibilities to take part in festivals and art-expeditions planned in the framework of the “Creative mountains” project and tested traditional culinary specialities and vine from Georgia and Slovakia during the alpine buffet.

The “Danilo Re Memorial” is a trophy competition dedicated to remember a ranger from Cuneo (Piemont, Italy) who died during his service in 1995. Since then, the event provides the occasion for rangers and other employees of the protected areas and conservation NGOs to meet. It is a great celebration of sport, healthy lifestyle and friendship between mountain parks and NGOs from the Alps and since 2017 also with representation of the Carpathian protected areas represented by Machaon’s team.

Alongside the competition in four sports disciplines by four member teams, the event includes thematic seminar and the ALPARC General Assembly. The seminar this year was dedicated to the topics of visitor management and climate change, which are not only popular terms in the media, but above all they represent an almost daily challenge for the work of the Alpine Park rangers and staff of protected areas. It included presentations from various protected areas as well as face-to-face workshops. Machaon’s experience of involving talented artists and creative professionals to work for promotion of protected areas aroused great interest of the colleagues. The occasion allows to build new friendships and working contacts, to promote ideas of the project “Creative mountains” and unique Slovak and Georgian nature among the Alpine colleagues and maybe one day also to have joint projects.

This year the competition had 46 teams from seven countries and 31 different protected areas, NGOs and local governments. The Slovak-Georgian team had happy number 13 and was composed of Jozef Bednar, Olga Belova, Svetlana Belova, Tariel Karelidze and Marian Dudra. During the apres-ski programme, each team brings some culinary specialities from its particular region to share them during the evening Alpine buffet. Slovakia was generously represented by meat products from Knizka butchery, cheese specialities, local cakes and drinks, Georgia by famous vine and traditional sweets from nuts and grape juice. All these were much appreciated by the Alpine colleagues.

It seems that it’s time to start training for the next memorial, because we have so many good-spirited people and wonderful opportunities in the our Slovak-Georgian-Armenian team of “Creative mountains” project!

Posted by: Svetlana Belova, January, 29, 2023

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the Svetlana Belova only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the granting authority European Education and Culture Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.