Preserving Culinary Heritage Across the Danube Region

One of the goals of the Culinary Trail Project is the promotion and preservation of the culinary heritage of 30 ethnic groups and 5 recent migrant groups across 14 countries in the Danube region, along with the stimulation of the local economy, the creation of new employment opportunities and the strengthening of rural tourism.

To accomplish this objective, one of the most important parts of the project is Activity A3.3 “Developing transnational action plans”, for the protection and development of ethnic and local culinary heritage in the Danube Region.

What are Transnational Action Plans (TAPs)?

An action plan outlines tasks and goals needed to achieve specific objectives. It provides a clear roadmap for individuals to follow in order to efficiently and effectively accomplish their objectives. To create those action plans it is important to instore a collaboration between project partners and stakeholders with participation in conferences and different workshops where knowledge and ideas are exchanged.

To properly implement Action Plans, which in our case are Transnational due to the cooperation between partners from different countries, it is important to start with a detailed SWOT analysis. A SWOT Analysis is a strategic planning tool used to identify and evaluate the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats associated with a project. Since we are working on the preservation of culinary heritage of ethnic communities, each partner is responsible for an ethnic community and has to find relevant stakeholders who are part of it in their regions. After collecting stakeholders, some of them become members of a Strategic Working Group (SWG) and help us, the partners, to fill a SWOT analysis related to their community. Those members are considered experts and know best what is needed by them.

This process is then followed by peer-to-peer meetings to validate the findings and ensure the accuracy of the collected data. The insights gained will contribute to the development of a strategic framework, leading to the formulation of action plans.

The Culinary Trail Project will therefore develop 33 transnational action plans, covering 30 ethnic groups from all 14 countries of the Danube Region, one for recent migrant groups and for risk scenarios like Covid-19 and war in Ukraine. This TAPs will ultimately be aimed at fostering the sustainable development and resilience of the community ensuring the preservation of their culinary heritage.

Written by: Tania Cimesa, Steinbeis Europa Zentrum