Journal on built & natural environment Published by GO2 Albania No. 36, April 2025 Distributed for free
In this issue: The line of the new European horizons PAGE 1, 2
Going beyond: The crossborder transhumance of Val Senales, Italy
PAGE 2, 4
Droving of livestock - transhumance in Albania PAGE 3, 4
A Portuguese transhumance between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean PAGE 5, 6
Tramontana - a partnership built over fifteen years of collaboration PAGE 5
The line of new European horizons
July 17th, 2024. Shepherds huts in Berizhdol, Kelmend, Albanian Alps, Albania. Photo: L.Ura
Introduced nine years ago with the goal of raising awareness among communities about Protected Areas in Albania1 and the intricate relationship between nature and humans, the VIJA journal is now evolving to a new level. From its inception2, the journal has consistently presented regional perspectives3 on these topics to the Albanian audience4. However, starting with this issue, VIJA will broaden its scope including international contexts, covering a wide range of subjects related to agriculture and pastoralism, water cultures, and social mobility across various European countries. A key feature of the journal’s new horizon is the active involvement of contributors from 7 European countries, all part of the Tramontana network. This initiative, supported since 2011 by the European Union’s Creative Europe program5, focuses on the in-depth research of the intangible heritage of rural and mountain communities in Europe, with the goal of preserving and revitalizing this cultural legacy. VIJA’s commitment to this cause follows GO2Albania’s joining the Tramontana Network, with the aim of including the rich intangible culture of the Albanian Highlands on the European map of this heritage. This new dimension will be presented through first-person narratives from prominent professionals in various European countries, including Albania, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, who will share the results and challenges of their decade-long work with mountain heritage. As in Albania, the intangible heritage of rural and mountain communities faces numerous threats, such as depopulation, the decline of traditional practices, transformation of the environment and the landscape, and marginalization due to globalizing trends. However, when these experiences are shared in this new forum, they will become accessible to a wider audience in each of the countries involved, owing to the journal’s bilingual format in Albanian and English from this point onward. This will allow for timely exchange of experiences and strategies related to the documentation, valorisation, and dissemination of mountain intangible heritage. It will also foster an understanding of historical events and how different regions experienced these moments in their own unique contexts. In Albania, for instance, the long period of isolation that followed World War II6 had a significant impact on the preservation of both tangible and intangible cultural heritage of rural communities, particularly in mountainous areas. Preservation efforts were also influenced by the socio-economic underdevelopment and tribal organization that resulted from the country’s prolonged Ottoman occupation7. In an anthropological and cultural perspective, this heritage remains a unique asset of the Albanian Highlands8, especially in comparison to much of Europe, where the loss of these values began with the Industrial Revolution9 and continued through the post-World War II reconstruction period10. continued at pg. 2 1) “Vija e horizontit, e ligjit dhe e njohjes”, VIJA nr. 1, Tetor 2016 2) Aleksandra Nikonidovic, “Planeti në udhëkryq dhe Kongresi Botëror i Ruajtjes së Natyrës”, VIJA nr. 2, 2016 3) “Censusi i Janarit konfirmon rëndësinë e Shqipërisë për shpendët ujorë”, VIJA nr. 6, 2017 4) Nexhat Avdiu, “Biodiversiteti i pasur i Liqenit të Shasit”, VIJA nr. 6, 2017 5) https://www.re-tramontana.org/about/ 6) Bernd J. Fischer, Oliver Jens Schmitt, “A Concise History of Albania”, 2022 7) Akademia e Shkencave e RSH, “Historia e Popullit Shqiptar 2”, 2002 8) Robert Elsie, “The Tribes of Albania: History, Society and Culture”, 2015 9) Patrick O’Brien, “The Industrial Revolutions in Europe (Industrial Relations)”, 1994 10) Tamás Vonyó, “Recovery and reconstruction: Europe after WWII”, 2019 (https:// cepr.org/voxeu/columns/recovery-and-reconstruction-europe-after-wwii)