REMPART starts a new project in the Caucasus

In 2021, REMPART and INTO start a cooperation project in the Caucasus with the National Trust of Georgia, with the support of ALIPH Foundation. The project concerns the restoration of the Tsiskarauli tower (16th and 17th centuries), a tower damaged during the Second Chechen War (2001). 

 

An exceptional site – The five-storey schist building is a masterpiece of the traditional architecture of the Khevsureti region, a high mountain region located north of Tbilisi. On a mountainside of the Greater Caucasus range, at an altitude of over 2,000 meters, the site overlooks the summer pasture village of Akhieli and its pastures. The qualities of the building and the country’s potential in the fields of culture, youth and volunteering, are strong assets of this new international project.

Trilateral cooperation – The action combines heritage restoration, thanks to the participatory approach of REMPART, and ecotourism development, based on the know-how of the British National Trust. The expertise of both organizations will serve the local partner for the next two years.

Almost a year of preparation – Preliminary actions for this project began in 2019 and the long working hours between the United Kingdom, France and Georgia resulted in financial support from the ALIPH Foundation in March 2020. The project will start in the first half of 2021 for 24 months.

 

 

For two years, this cooperation will allow on-site technical missions, training programs in France, and, above all, the implementation of 4 volunteers actions (working holidays) in Georgia, involving local and international volunteers. REMPART will also take part in a mission at the beginning of summer 2021 to visit the tower. Due to the climatic conditions of the mountain, the site is only accessible from the end of May to mid-September, so the time to work is narrow! In this context, REMPART will have to hire a mason, who would act as a technical coordinator to support the mission on site. The working holidays’ sessions, 1 in 2021 and 3 in 2022, will welcome 14 participants, from France and the United Kingdom, as well as Georgians who will be recruited by the local National Trust.

 

 

The development of a project in the Caucasus corresponds to a strategic objective of REMPART. Georgia is a member of the Council of Europe and closely works with the European Union through economic and cultural agreements, and a clear opening to international tourism.

 

For more information: duffaud@rempart.com