On July 25-26, 20 representatives from target communities of the project “Revealing the potential of heritage for the economic development of small communities” joined forces for a workshop-workshop “Women’s Participation in Heritage-Based Local Economic Development”. The goal of the workshop-workshop: to provide women from partner communities of the USAID HOVERLA Project with effective tools for participation in planning and managing local economic development related to tourism and hospitality, focused on cultural and natural heritage. The organizers and speakers of the workshop sought to promote women’s civic participation in initiatives related to the preservation and use of local heritage, to inspire them with new project ideas or creative innovations for the economic development of their communities.

Participants from eleven territorial communities arrived in Ivano-Frankivsk, namely: Dykanska, Senchanska, Orzhytska Poltava region, Chernyakhivska and Khoroshivska Zhytomyr region, Goshchanska and Bilokrynytska Rivne region, Zymnivska and Shatska Volyn region, Dovzhanska and Horinchivska Zakarpattia region. Women were invited to participate in the workshop: local government officials responsible for the preservation of heritage resources, local economic development or the development of culture and tourism in target communities, heads of municipal institutions "Culture and Leisure Centers", museums and heads of village houses of culture, as well as representatives of CSOs whose areas of activity include issues of culture, tourism, ecology, economic development, hospitality, management (cooperation) of local development projects.

The training workshop included a two-day program based on four territorial communities. The first day of the workshop was held in Vyhodska, and the second day in Pasichnya, Nadvirnya and Kosivska communities of Ivano-Frankivsk region. The indicated communities are at different stages of implementation of development projects based on local heritage, thus the participants of the workshop were able to clearly observe the different stages of formation and development of anchor projects.

The speakers of the workshop were women with relevant experience and practical skills, who were able to show the successes of development projects based on heritage, talk about the challenges they faced and the algorithm of steps in overcoming obstacles.

The first day in the Vygodska community opened up to the participants the tool of giving meaning to heritage through interpretation, namely: the evolution of understanding of heritage, the purpose of interpretation, the target audience, heritage resources and means of interpretation, examples of the development of products based on heritage and women's entrepreneurial initiatives around it. There, the speakers of the workshop focused on identifying opportunities for using heritage resources for the economic development of their communities, identifying stakeholders and analyzing interested parties, algorithms for creating and organizing attractions, implementing projects, entrepreneurial and public initiatives based on cultural and natural heritage.

On the second day, representatives of territorial communities in the Nadvirnianska TG were able to get acquainted with the anchor development project around the historical heritage of the Pniv fortress, the creative approach of women designers to the interpretation of the Pniv castle, and female leadership in the development of the Krasnodvir castle theater initiative. Also, at the Carpathian Culture Center, workshop participants had the opportunity to learn about women's participation in development projects in the Kosiv region, the creation of a cultural and creative hub and space.

As part of the workshop, participants received successful examples and cases of women's involvement, their role and effective participation in planning and managing local economic development related to tourism and hospitality, focused on heritage, studying and analyzing the situation, as well as familiarization with technologies for promoting new products, finding financing and building partnerships necessary for the successful implementation of projects, for the further development of communities and optimizing similar processes in their communities. According to the participants, participation in the workshop inspired them with a number of fresh ideas, which they intend to transform into specific local development projects in the future.

This publication were developed by NGO Agency for Private Initiative Development within the project Revealing the potential of heritage for the economic development of small communities and were made possible by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the generous support of the American people through USAID HOVERLA Activity. The contents of this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.

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