China meets Hallstatt A contribution for an intercultural dialogue through work and travel Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut UNESCO World Heritage Cultural Landscape Hallstatt JULY 6th - JULY 19th 2014 China meets Hallstatt is part of the campaign World Heritage Volunteers, led by UNESCO World Heritage Centre Paris and the Coordinating Committee for International Voluntary Service www.whvolunteers.org Dear young, tough, sweet-tempered world heritage loving volunteer! Have a hearty welcome as one of the exquisite participants of the International Work Camp „China meets Hallstatt“ in Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut World Heritage Cultural Landscape/Upper Austria! From JULY 6th till JULY 19th you will be part of a group of about 20-25 crazy people from China and Austria doing hard, but valuable work in the mountains around the gorgeous village of Hallstatt. Are you ready for it? We hope so, but please read carefully through this info sheet so you arrive well equipped and prepared on the camp. The idea and your contribution Since 2008 The UNESCO World Heritage Centre Paris and the Coordinating Committee for International Voluntary Service work together to promote and strength voluntary programs within World Heritage Sites. The campaign “World Heritage Volunteers” aims for implementing international voluntary work camps as accepted tool not only for conservation and preservation but also as a contribution for peace, international understanding and for sustainable development and education. For this project the village of Hallstatt, The Chinese Society Society of Education Training Center, Service Civil International – Austria and the The Austrian Youth Alpine Association cooperate to bring –you included – Chinese and Austrian youths and volunteers together to join a World Heritage Volunteers project in the middle of the Austrian Alps. Why China and Hallstatt? In the city of Huizhou in the province of Guangodon in China an estate company and investment group rebuilt the Austrian alpine village of Hallstatt. Hallstatt-Dachstein/Salzkammergut cultural landscape is since 1997 on the World Heritage List. The copy in China was opened in 2012 and for the main part it contains luxury apartments. This project had aroused an intensive discussion about the value and uniqueness of historic buildings and sites in general in Austria. The whole topic received a lot of international press and media attention. “China meets Hallstatt” focuses on two key aspects. Through the international youth exchange Chinese volunteers got the chance to get to know the real Hallstatt. The will have the possibility to learn about day-to-day business of this unique alpine village and of the duties and challenges to preserve the village together with locals. They aren’t going to see Hallstatt as a touristic scenery but as a vivid, active and prosperous world heritage site. The involvement and invitation of you and other national volunteers through the Alpine Youth Association and Service Civil International there will be a deep and intense intercultural exchange between Chinese and Austrian Youth. The project will contribute to the foundation for a better understanding among the participants and the locals themselves about the management of Hallstatt world heritage site and the approach to heritage management and volunteering in China. “China meets Hallstatt” is also an instrument to promote tourism and peace and to develop new friendly relations between Austrian and Chinese institutions. The organisation and your partners: This International Work Camp is hosted by the ÖAV- Österreichischer Alpenverein (Austrian Alpine Association) and the SCI-Service Civil International. These experienced voluntary institutions will send between eight and twelve Austrian volunteers. The Alpenverein exists since 1862 and ever since this organisation tries to make the environment of the Alps open for the public, but in the same time to make the public aware of its magnificent and sensible nature, which needs support and protection. The SCI on the other hand is active in coordinating voluntary projects for the benefit of people, the environment and communities all over the world. SCI-Austria has already been a member of World Heritage Volunteers since 2012 through a project called WachauVolunteer – Youth for Nature at Wachau World Heritage Site. The Chinese Society of Education Training Centre has a strong focus on international voluntary and youth exchange programs. CSET China are very strong connected with the National UNESCO Commission of China. In 2012 CSETC have joined for the first time World Heritage Volunteers and became a valuable member of the campaign. The field of operation – your world heritage site Hallstatt in the province of Upper Austria is a village in the Salzkammergut. It is located near the Hallstätter See (a lake). Hallstatt is known for its production of salt, dating back to prehistoric times, and gave its name to the Hallstatt culture, a culture often linked to Celtic, Proto-Celtic, and pre-Illyrian peoples in Early Iron Age Europe, c.800–450 BCE. Situated in the south-western shore of the Hallstätter Sea, the town lies in the geographical region of Salzkammergut. Salt was a valuable resource, so the region was historically very wealthy. The village also gave its name to the early Iron Age Hallstatt culture. Hallstatt is a popular tourist attraction owing to its small-town appeal. At the 2001 census, it had 946 inhabitants. The greater Region in which Hallstatt lies is called Salzkammergut. It stretches from the City of Salzburg eastwards along the Austrian Alpine Foreland and the Northern Limestone Alps to the peak of the Dachstein Mountain, spanning the federal states of Upper Austria, Salzburg, and Styria. The name Salzkammergut literally means "Estate of the Salt Chamber" and derives from the Imperial Salt Chamber, the authority charged with running the precious salt mines of the Habsburg Monarchy. Hallstatt is one of the touristic hotspots in the Austrian Alps and Austria in general and the small village is visited by over 500.000 tourists a year In 1996 Hallstatt and the region of Salzkammergut with the mountain range of Dachstein-Krippenstein were included in the world heritage list of UNESCO. The accommodation – your home: For both weeks we will stay in the Volksschule – elementary school of Hallstatt located in centre of Hallstatt. You need a sleeping bag and a camping bag (Isomatte). The kitchen in the neighbouring rectory of the catholic community of Hallstatt is ours so we will cook together and we will share international food culture and cooking style. If you have any allergies or special food wishes (vegetarian), please let me know in advance! The work – your duties: The village of Hallstatt is well known for its traditional architecture and well preserved townscape and houses. The village is lies on a small waterside front just beyond steep hills and mountain forests. Until the end of the 19th century there was even no street and Hallstatt could only be reached by foot or by boat. The waterside front is so narrow that some houses could have been only entered on the roof through the walking paths. The protection forests above the village play a significant role in the preservation and safety of Hallstatt. You will help to clean and tidy some parts of the protection forest. Side by side you will work with staff of the Austrian Service for Torrent and Avalanche Control and the Austria Federal Forests. Volunteers from the village and the local Austria Alpine Association will also support you. Sounds like a lot of work is waiting for us there! But we know that together we can achieve a lot. Together we make a huge Chinese-Austrian contribution for the safety and protection of this unique place. Leisure time: No you are not just on this camp for working! We will be able to enjoy free time after a hard working day by playing games, getting to know each other better and by talking about all kinds of different topics. One of the goals of this camp next to doing valuable work is to have a cultural exchange and to support the understanding of different cultures. We will work four days a week from 8 a.m. till 5 p.m. with breaks in between. Wednesday will be our day off. Depending on the weather we have a hike planned and we could also go swimming in the Lake of Hallstatt. We might visit the mountain of Dachstein or Krippenstein or visit the salt mines of Hallstatt. Once we will be visited by “peace messengers” from the SCI, who will play interactive games with us to show us the difficulties of bringing different cultures together. As I know that music connects people I would embrace it, if somebody would bring his/her guitar. If you have one and are willing to play some songs -Beatles is best, as experience shows that everyone knows their lyrics- please let me know! EXTRAS: English is the official language of the camp, Therefore this info sheet is only in English. I do ask everybody to respect this also during the camp, so everyone can participate. Please contact me before the camp in case I should know about specific health conditions (allergies, medicine to take...) or diets (vegetarian...). Some interesting websites, you might want to check out: Village of Hallstatt www.hallstatt.at; www.hallstatt.net World Heritage Volunteers WHV www.whvolunteers.org UNESCO WHV http://whc.unesco.org/en/whvolunteers/ CCIVS www.ccivs.org Austrian Alpine Association (ÖAV) http://www.alpenverein.at Service Civil International (SCI) http://www.sci.or.at CSET China