“Local Development Pilot Project: the Island of Cres”

1. Local Development Pilot Project: Island
of Cres
Tatjana Lolić, Ministry of Culture, Conservation Department in Zagreb
Project Coordinator
s Network on Intangible Cultural Heritage “Intangible Cultural Heritage and World Heritage: synergies and coordination between the UNESCO 200

2. BACKGROUND
• Within the Regional Programme for Cultural
and Natural Heritage in South East Europe the
Council of Europe, together with the Ministry of
Culture of the Republic of Croatia initiated the
Local Development Pilot Project
• One of the key specific objectives of the Pilot
Project was to create a long-term development
plan for the medium sized coherent territory,
identified on the basses of the shared
geographic – cultural – traditional and
economical profile of the territory rather than
through the administrative borders.
• The application of LDPP principles implement
the Framework Convention on value of the
cultural heritage for society and the European
Landscape Convention to align countries
strategies with the principals and methods of
the 2014 – 2020 EU cohesion policy.
• Approach promotes: democratic culture,
specific development model, social and
economic values of heritage and community in
the centre of the process

3. THE TERRITORY
• Island of Cres is the biggest Adriatic island (405,7
km2)
• 2 municipalities (Cres and Mali Lošinj)
• Only 3.055 inhabitants (depopulation trends)
• The pilot territory covers the whole island of Cres,
which is characterised by very steep coastlines.
• Island is parcelled out by long stretches of dry-stone
walls which testify to the century-long cattle and
agricultural farms,forming a specific cultural
landscape.

4. • TOWN AND THE VILLAGES
Urban features displays only the
Town of Cres, while the other
place are mostly of rural
character, or historic towns which
acquired a specific urban-rural
character during time
Typical settlements are
positioned throughout the inland.

5. CHALLENGES ON NATIONAL LEVEL:
• Difficulties to preserve
vernacular heritage;
depopulation of rural
area, abandonment of
traditional agriculture,
property rights issues
• Typical rural
Mediterranean
architecture illustrates
villages and over 50
abandoned complexes
of the shepherd’s
facilities forming a
specific feature within
the social economic

6. CHALLENGES ON THE NATIONAL LEVEL:
• Development of a model to preserve the Mediterranean type of architecture without
the need to register the single goods (type protection)
• More than hundreds of abandoned Romanesque and Gothic chapels are situated
throughout these uninhabited expanses, places of historical gatherings, shelters and
prayers far from the populated areas

7. CHALLENGES ON NATIONAL LEVEL
• Protection of landscape is regulated by 2 different laws (culture and nature)
• Apart from the woody northern part the island’s landscape is mainly bare rocky
countryside
• Vrana lake is huge natural water-reservoir
• Between 60 and 80 couples of griffon vultures nest within this area today.

8. CHALLENGES ON NATIONAL LEVEL:
• Job creation, to stop depopulation trends on Croatian islands
• The key island activities represent: tourism, agriculture, hunting and fishing.
• Traditional economy includes sheep-raising, olive growing and agriculture. Sheep-raising is an important
additional activity of the population. There are 15000 sheep that are freely moving across the island.
• Easy profit from tourism is another reason for abandoning traditional types of activities, even if unlike
many other Croatian islands, the island of Cres is relatively poorly developed in terms of mass
tourism. Short seasonal tourism attracts visitors who settle almost exclusively in the town of Cres where
all the accommodation capacities are located

9. OBJECTIVES
• To capitalise on local assets, highlighting their very specific quality and
creating new top-quality local products of great additional value.
• The characteristics of the pilot territory, which the local population interpret as
negative (isolation, underdevelopment, low population density, insufficient
presence of modern types of economy), can become the basis for specific
development by means of the future territorial development project, and grow
into a kind of asset: prevention of mass tourism development; revitalisation of
cultural and natural heritage as one of the bearers of economy development;
promotion of traditional crafts and types of economy; the creation of high-
quality, distinctive local products; employment and education of the local
population; development based on taking advantage of the existing
characteristics that are of great additional value.
• Mediation, resolution of the conflicts of interest, and the participation of all
stakeholders will lead to appropriate decisions about the elaboration of long-
term national and regional programmes.

10. APPROACH
• Participative approach
carried out by LDPP team:
- 20 workshops on Heritage,
Economy, Governance and
Social environment
- Over 100 participants from
local community, regional
and national authorities and
institutions
- 17 coordination meetings of
countries and Council of
Europe
- 10 inter-ministerial working
group sessions
- 3 national round table on
regional development

11. MANAGEMENT STRUCTURE, THE DOCUMENTS
SIGNED
• Political Statement
• Terms of
Reference
• The Strategic
Notes
• The Strategic
Statement
• The Diagnosis of
the Territory
• Strategy
• Territory Charter
• Interministerial Commission It is the body
established at national level and consisting of
representatives from partner ministries.
Decision on adopting Diagnosis, Strategy,
Operational Programme and Territory Charter.
• Steering Committee consists of local and
regional politically elected and opposition
representatives, institutions and civil
organisations, as well as local development
stakeholders. Steering Committee is comprised
of 15-20 members, and is chaired by the mayor
of the town of Cres.
• Project Implementation UnitThe PIU is
managed by the Project Manager. Project
Implementation Unit prepares annual
programmes of activities, including the budget
and communication plan, organises working
groups, elaborates a one-year action plan
(working programme, schedule, budget).

12. TERRITORIAL DIAGNOSIS

14. LANDSCAPE SURVEY

15. HERITAGE SURVEY

16. TERRITORIAL STRATEGY
SHARED RESPONSIBILITY AND
MANAGEMENT OF THE DEVELOPMENT
OF THE ISLAND
TERRITORY
STRATEGY
2014 - 2025

17. PEOPLE AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN
THE CENTRE OF THE DEVELOPMENT
TERRITORIAL STRATEGY

18. LONG TERM IMPACT, REPLICATION
• The alternative approach to sustainable development based on the
wise management of local cultural resources, community-led projects,
place-based strategies
• Acting on living standards and the quality of life, the community led
decision making process, the co-management and consensus
building;
• New relations between institutional stakeholders and the civil society,
the integration of the local skills and competencies in the development
process, the specificity of the local practices recognised and accepted
to contribute to the development process, etc.

19. • Conference on regional and local development in the context of
Faro Convention
• To be held on Island of Cres within Croatian presidency of
SEECP
• Step forward, lesson learned, potential in the heritage led,
community centred approach.
SEECP Conference 48-30 April 2017

20. 20
Thank you!