FT became a member of the University Network for Cultural Routes Studies

On 4 January 2022, the Faculty of Tourism of the University of Maribor and the European Institute of Cultural Routes (EICR) signed an agreement in which both institutions committed themselves to cooperate in the development of research and interdisciplinary studies related to the Cultural Routes of Council of Europe in Higher Education.

Now we are happy to pronounce we are also publicly recognised as members.

The Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe programme, and more particularly the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA), which benefits from the support of the European Institute of Cultural Routes, the technical agency of the Programme, is involved since its creation in cooperation actions with different higher educational institutions. In 2012, a “University Network for Cultural Routes Studies” was set up to facilitate the exchange of knowledge between the Council of Europe Cultural Routes programme and the universities active in the field of preservation and promotion of cultural heritage and certified cultural routes.

The network aims to promote academic research on cultural routes, encourage students to research in this field, apply jointly European development funds, participate in the annual activity programme, and provide scientific advice where necessary. It is also a platform for the exchange and mobility of students and researchers. By joining, the Faculty of Tourism of the University of Maribor joined many well-known institutions such as the University of Bologna and Sorbonne University.

During the international project Interreg Mediterranean BEST MED, University of Maribor established the BestMed Open Platform, an effective tool for collecting tourist data for cultural routes designed to monitor social, economic and environmental impacts. As a result, the faculty also joined the BEST MED Network of Tourism Observatories, which is intended to collect and systematise relevant information and knowledge related to the monitoring and managing data on sustainable tourism.

As part of the Network of Universities for the Study of Cultural Routes, the Faculty of Tourism will focus its efforts to explore the relationship between cultural routes and climate change. With their diversified network of destinations and untapped potential for green mobility, the routes can make an essential contribution to responsible tourism, which minimises the impact of the carbon footprint of tourism. Cultural routes are furthermore potential inspiration on how culture and cultural resources are used to mitigate and/or adapt to climate change, providing opportunities for slow tourism, landscape conservation and the development of alternative economic activities in rural areas.