A Service of Leibniz-Informationszentrum econstor Wirtschaft Leibniz Information Centre Make Your Publications Visible. zbw for Economics Konsola, Dora; Fotiadi, Zoe; Marinou, Aliki Conference Paper Innovation As a Tool for Local Development. Introducing New Technologies for the Interpretation of Cultural Heritage: the Case of the RI-SE Programme in Sterea Ellada 46th Congress of the European Regional Science Association: "Enlargement, Southern Europe and the Mediterranean", August 30th - September 3rd, 2006, Volos, Greece Provided in Cooperation with: European Regional Science Association (ERSA) Suggested Citation: Konsola, Dora; Fotiadi, Zoe; Marinou, Aliki (2006) : Innovation As a Tool for Local Development. Introducing New Technologies for the Interpretation of Cultural Heritage: the Case of the RI-SE Programme in Sterea Ellada, 46th Congress of the European Regional Science Association: "Enlargement, Southern Europe and the Mediterranean", August 30th - September 3rd, 2006, Volos, Greece, European Regional Science Association (ERSA), Louvain-la-Neuve This Version is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/118306 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. personal and scholarly purposes. 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INTRODUCING NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE: THE CASE OF THE RI-SE PROGRAM IN STEREA ELLADA. Dora Konsola, Professor, Panteion University, Athens * Zoe Fotiadi, Lecturer, Panteion University, Athens * Aliki Marinou, Museologist, Regional Development Institute, Athens * ABSTRACT The introduction and pilot application of innovative methods in the field of cultural heritage presentation and interpretation can have a significant effect on local development by boosting tourism and the related economic activities, increasing familiarity with new technologies and creating a sense of local pride. This paper aims to examine the role of cultural innovation in local and regional development, mainly through the promotion of cultural tourism with the involvement of local community. The paper focuses on the presentation of a case study that illustrates the potential of local communities to utilize lesser known heritage monuments and sites in their vicinity in order to create tourist attractions. The case study presented is that of the RI-SE Innovative Actions Program that was implemented in the Greek Region of Sterea Ellada from 2003 to 2004, aiming to introduce and incorporate innovation in the region’s economic and cultural activities through the provision of new services and the utilization of high technology. Within the framework of this program, five pilot Multimedia Centres for Heritage Interpretation were established in the municipalities of Orchomenos, Lamia, Gravia, Karystos and Fragista, in close collaboration with the respective local authorities. One of the above Municipalities that participated in the program, Gravia, is presented in even greater detail and further analysed as a success story that emerged from the RI-SE program. Finally, a first appraisal of the program’s results is attempted and some key issues are discussed which must be taken into account in the design and implementation of similar projects by other municipalities. * Regional Development Institute, 130 Syngrou Ave., 11741 Athens tel.: (0030)2109234448, (0030)2109248680, (0030)2109220865, fax: (0030)2109232979, email: [email protected] 1 KEYWORDS Cultural tourism, heritage interpretation, local development, new technologies, Sterea Ellada. 1. INTRODUCTION Cultural heritage in Greece has always been a major pole of attraction for visitors to the country and consequently among the basic contributors to the formation of the touristic flow. The hundreds, or rather thousands of archaeological and historical monuments and sites are distributed in every region of the country. A small percentage of them comprise the world famous and highly significant sites, such as the Acropolis of Athens, Delphi, Olympia, Mycenae, Knossos and several others, which are the focus of mass tourism. A second category, slightly larger than the first, are those sites that form part of more specialized touristic or educational programs. However, the majority of Greece's monuments and sites are either lesser known or even totally unknown to the broader public, although they have their own place in the long process of historic development and comprise an important constituent of the cultural identity of a region or community. Such often modest in appearance places include small archaeological sites, historic places like battlefields, medieval fortresses, small churches and abandoned monasteries, structures of vernacular architecture etc., often in bad state of preservation and therefore off the beaten path of established tourism (Konsola 1993). It is precisely these overlooked sites that are of interest for this paper which intends to show how they can become a positive instrument for local development. Namely, these less spectacular heritage sites in peripheral areas, if they are properly conserved, restored, interpreted and promoted and in general managed successfully can prove extremely useful in providing a truer understanding of local history and identity as well as socio-economic advantages for local communities by attracting visitors and thus stimulate local economies either through direct or indirect effects or even through more general spin-offs (see, among others: Pearce 1990, Greffe and Pflieger 2005, Tsartas 2005). These sites can arouse the interest of more sophisticated travelers seeking authenticity and excitement in discovering the original sense of an unknown place which offers a strong alternative to the products and experiences available in places of mass tourism (Liu 2005). Local communities in order to take advantage of the presence of these small sites located in their vicinity can play a decisive role in developing and implementing a cultural tourism project. They cannot of course intervene in the stages of conservation and restoration as these are often the responsibility of the central government (especially the Ministry of Culture) which in most cases is interested only 2 in the first stage, that of conservation. This emphasis on conservation results in a tendency to remove heritage sites from the experience of the host community, which is thus deprived of the opportunity to recognize and appreciate their value and to establish a sense of local “ownership” and affiliation (Grimwade and Carter 2000). However, the crucial element of interpretation and presentation to visitors, both local residents and tourists, can be undertaken at local level by municipal councils, voluntary associations etc., certainly under the professional guidance of experts and within the framework of internationally recognized and appropriately applied standards (ICOMOS 1999). The interpretation of cultural heritage is a complex and sometimes controversial procedure, since its purpose is to give meaning to archaeological and historic monuments and sites and to convey this meaning to the wider public (Uzzel 1989, Howard, 2003). To this end, many different means can be used. Besides the traditional means, such as publication of pamphlets, guidebooks, maps etc., which constitute the main sources of information (Prentice 1993), today modern technologies are often used (e.g. multimedia presentations that combine pictures, videos, narration, music and text, virtual reality setups, interactive installations, individual guiding systems etc.) as site interpretative media. High- technology solutions are ideal means of interpretation since they allow for a high degree of versatility and interactivity, thus making interpretation a two-way, open- ended and ongoing process (Jones-Garmil 1997, Economou 2006). In the following chapters will be presented a case study illustrating the use of a few of the above new technologies for the presentation and interpretation of less known heritage sites in rather isolated places of the Region of Sterea Ellada with the active participation of local agents. 2. OVERVIEW OF THE RI-SE PROJECT The RI-SE (Regional Innovation Sterea Ellada) program, part of the European program “Innovation Actions”, aimed to introduce and incorporate innovation in the region’s economic and cultural activities through the provision of new services and the utilization of high technology. Its application was undertaken by the Regional Development Institute