All ethnic groups contribute significantly to the cultural identity of a locality, influencing each other in all aspects of daily life. Romanians, Hungarians and Roma people have lived together for hundreds of years in the villages of Transylvania, with an obvious interethnic influence in terms of their culture. The project aims at the equitable and equidistant representation of the three ethnic groups, in three rural localities from Cluj County.

Cluj county, Transylvania region, North-West Romania

Although multiethnic coexistence has been specific to the localities of Transylvania for hundreds of years, there are still discontinuities in the promotion of cultural and personal heritage, a number of elements that give the cultural identity of the community risk disappearing with their owners.The project aims to identify mutual influences, both culturally and socially and to raise awareness among community members of the force of change through combined actions and active involvement. Equally, the project aims to cultivate a sense of pride in living in the countryside and belonging to a united community.

By equidistant and equitable representation of cultural heritage of all ethnic groups in the three communes, the project aims to foster a sense of belonging to a united community. Thus, the points of cultural confluence, the specific elements of each ethnic group adopted and integrated in the community will be highlighted and everyone will be given an equal voice to express their needs, expectations, achievements, and identity. The project targets resident citizens of the three communes belonging to the Romanian, Hungarian and Roma ethnic groups who, through their personal heritage (life experiences, stories, testimonies, objects, gastronomic recipes, etc.) can represent their ethnicity.

The project will take place in the Tourist Information Centers of the communes, these spots becoming centers of community cohesion and promotion ​​of the community values. In the first phase of the project, local authorities and leaders of the ethnic groups will be contacted, and with their help all the information related to history, daily life, personal and cultural heritage and even objects that citizens are willing to donate will be collected from citizens. In the second stage, all this material will be organized in a community exhibition aimed at reproducing the concept of unity in diversity and fostering a sense of pride and belonging to a united community.
The exhibition will consist of printed materials, photographs and objects donated by citizens, the exhibition concept following the cultural diversity of the community
Through workshops and community meetings, people will be encouraged to express their views on cultural diversity and the importance of preserving and capitalizing on personal and local heritage. All these ideas will be publicly debated together with local authorities and other actors involved in community actions, thus encouraging active involvement in community decision-making.

By identifying and promoting the personal and local heritage as elements of community cohesion, the project aims to increase the level of social equity and inclusion, to increase intra-community trust, community development by encouraging private initiatives and entrepreneurship for all three ethnic groups, to increase the level of active involvement in community decision-making processes, to decrease the level of crime, to increase access to education and culture, to increase the administrative capacity of local authorities, to encourage cultural tourism, to facilitate the exchange of experience between villages and access to expertise related to heritage and local development.

Encouraging citizens to participate in debates on cultural diversity and the importance of promoting local heritage aims to strengthen the civic spirit and open dialogue between them and the authorities. At the same time, bringing in front of the people examples of good practices, citizens will be encouraged to initiate, and participate in community development projects. On the other hand, by participating in this project, local authorities will commit to continue the consultative process in order to increase administrative capacity. The active participation of the citizens in the community exhibition will raise awareness of the importance of conservation and promotion of the local heritage, the choice of the exhibition theme being entirely up to the citizens.

The localities proposed in the project are part of the Remarkable Romania network, a network of connected rural settlements to exchange practices and to participate in sustainable development projects around cultural heritage. Currently, the network includes 11 rural localities in the Transylvania region, but we intend to expand the network nationally by 2024. The project is developed by the Cluj Cultural Center in partnership with Sites & Cites Remarcable de France. Cluj Cultural Center is a non-governmental organization for cultural and urban development whose mission is to mobilize culture, in partnership with other sectors, to contribute to both, social transformation and urban development, through major cultural projects in Transylvania.

Exhibition installation 6.000 EUR
Printed materials 9.000 EUR
Travel expenses 3.000 EUR
Publicity 4.000 EUR
Costs for events 4.000 EUR
Team, experts and specialists 9.000 EUR

We want to hear how other rural communities successfully get involved in the process of cultural heritage preservation and promotion.