Valorising cultural heritage and fostering sustainable tourism by LIVING the common heritage on the DANUBE LIMES as basis for a cultural route

Building on existing work from previous projects such as 'Danube Limes Brand' and 'DANUrb', this project lays the cornerstone for a future Danube Limes Cultural Route representing the Roman heritage along the Danube Limes, linking all the countries of the Danube Region and connecting them to the extensive network of Roman Empire frontiers stretching from Hadrian's Wall in Britain to the frontiers in North Africa and the Middle East.

The Danube Region is a core element of UNESCO's Borders of the Roman Empire network. Developing and enhancing the unifying aspects of the Roman cultural heritage along the Danube links tangible and intangible heritage and highlights not only the shared history, but also the cultural and natural diversity along the former frontier of the Roman Empire, which was a transnational, cultural and economic waterway rather than a strict border in the modern sense.

The main concern and challenge identified and addressed by Living Danube Limes is the connection of the entire Danube region and the identification of its citizens with the geographical area connected by the Danube.

The Roman Danube Limes connects Central Europe with South-Eastern Europe. Both regions are at very different levels of economic and infrastructural development and at different stages of the European integration process. Each country has different laws for the protection of cultural heritage and the management of cultural sites, as well as different standards and objectives for sustainable and ecological tourism development. This requires a differentiated approach to project activities, such as improving the visibility of the Roman heritage, green infrastructure measures or the organisation of 'Living History' events, which are a tangible and visible symbol of the Danube Region's connection through its Roman heritage.

The main objective of Living Danube Limes is to connect the entire Danube region through its common Roman heritage. The project aims to support the preservation of this cultural heritage by raising awareness of the value of the common heritage, while respecting local differences and specificities, and promoting the understanding that the Roman Danube Limes was not only a border fortification network, but also an extensive trading area with a high degree of mobility.

The Living Danube Limes project aims to lay the cornerstone of a European Cultural Route that will encompass the entire Danube basin, connecting the region and helping to overcome public and political disinterest in the cultural, economic and tourist potential of Roman cultural sites in Eastern, but also Central, European countries.

The project also supports the nomination of the entire Danube Limes as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, focusing on the nomination process for Croatia, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria.

The impact of supporting the nomination process will be as follows

• Raise public awareness and political support for investment in the conservation and presentation of the Roman heritage.
• The nomination is an integral part of the future Danube Limes Cultural Route.
• Promote understanding and awareness of an interconnected Danube region

In addition, tourism strategies specifically developed for the Danube Limes will provide the basis for the development of a sustainable branding of the entire region as a coordinated tourism destination with solutions and offers for sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism.

Moreover, pilot sites and activities will be tested as models for the development and implementation of transnational strategies for increased and sustainable tourism and the protection of cultural sites. These sites will be linked to the project and brought to life through 'Living History' activities. They underline the touristic importance of the whole area and characterise the Danube as a wide river band with diverse touristic and educational products.

The formation of clusters of museums and visitor centres, virtually networked throughout the Danube region via the Living Danube Limes App, to coordinate the visualisation of the entire Danube Limes between all participating museums, institutions and countries, is intended to serve as an interface to the public and to make the Danube Limes more visible and attractive as a tourist destination.

This will also be supported by the 'Connecting Cruise', the journey of the authentic reconstructed 4th century Late Roman ship 'Lusoria' along the Danube, as well as a series of 'Living History' events in the partner countries.

All activities in the fields of 'Living History', education, knowledge transfer and competence development will be accompanied by information, dissemination and promotion measures for the identified stakeholders, especially the citizens of the Danube region, in order to foster a common sense of identity in the Danube region and to ensure a sustainable and environmentally sound protection of the cultural heritage.

The problem of lack of knowledge, data availability and exchange as well as ignorance of the enormous potential of the often little known cultural heritage sites along the Danube will be addressed under the guiding principles of environmental compatibility, sustainability and networking by highlighting the common history, developing strategies for sustainable tourism solutions with corresponding proposals for future investment in economically viable reconstruction and visualisation measures.

Project objectives - Bringing Roman history to life:

• The project will establish eight national pilot sites where regular public activities such as 'Living History' events and workshops will take place.

• Workshops will be organised and documented to disseminate historical craft techniques.

• The application of modern non-invasive archaeological geoprospection at selected pilot sites will fill several research gaps.

• The establishment of a transnational museum cluster will promote the joint presentation of the Roman heritage in the Danube region, in order to create better visibility and understanding of the scope and significance of this unifying historical landscape.

• As part of the project, a Roman Danube ship from the 4th century AD will be reconstructed using replicas of Roman tools. As part of the 'Connecting Cruise 2022', a Living History Danube Cruise from Germany towards the Black Sea, the 'Danuvina Alacris' will be rowed down the Danube using only the muscle power of international Living History crews to illustrate the connecting nature of the Roman Danube Limes. The ship and its crew will stop at each pilot site in each country to take part in a 'Living History' festival, which will also allow for a variety of interactions with local people.

           After the project is completed, the ship will be made available to each               pilot site for one year to act as a point of attraction and motivation for                 further investment in the pilot site.

• A Living Danube Limes app will be developed to provide a comprehensive and easily accessible archaeological and historical catalogue of the Danube region, bringing together data from previous initiatives and new data generated by the Living Danube Limes research activities.

• Virtual and augmented reality reconstructions of the original Roman Limes infrastructure will be created from the geophysical survey data of the project's pilot sites and made available on the Living Danube Limes App.

• Virtual and augmented reality reconstructions of the original Roman Limes infrastructure will be created from the geophysical survey data of the project's pilot sites and made available on the Living Danube Limes App.

• Physical reconstructions at the pilot sites will complement the virtual reconstructions to generate interest and encourage follow-up projects and investment at the sites.

This will be achieved by

• Improving data availability across the Danube Region (app, website).
• Involving relevant stakeholders (museum and visitor centres clusters, sustainable tourism development at local and regional level, transnational heritage protection strategy, support to the UNESCO World Heritage nomination process, cultural route cornerstone).
• Creating a better understanding of the common heritage of the Roman Danube Limes and the economic value of the Roman sites
• and in particular by increasing the connectivity and visibility of the interlinked Danube region.