The Cyprus Institute is one of the founding members of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Nicosia, along with the Municipality of Nicosia, the University of Cyprus, the A.G. Leventis Foundation and Europa Nostra, which is leading this Initiative.

Europa Nostra’s Secretary General, Mrs. Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, and its Vice-President, Mrs. Androula Vassiliou, met on Thursday, October 12, 2023 at the Municipality of Nicosia with the Mayor of Nicosia, Mr. Constantinos Yiorkadjis, CyI President, Prof. Stavros Malas, Rector of the University of Cyprus, Prof. Tasos Christofides, and Mrs. Agni Petridou, representative of The A. G. Leventis Foundation to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for the launch of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Nicosia.

The decision for the creation of Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Nicosia builds on the implementation of the EU-funded pilot-project “European Heritage Hub” which is run by a European consortium of partners led by Europa Nostra.

For the purpose of the establishment and implementation of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Nicosia, the founding members agreed on the following main goals and broad areas of cooperation:
• Contribute to the implementation of the mission and action of Europa Nostra, as defined in its Strategic Plan, covering both tangible and intangible heritage;
• Contribute to the implementation of the European Heritage Hub pilot-project with the focus on the positive contribution of cultural heritage to an integrated action towards sustainability focusing on the triple transformation of our society: green, digital and social;
• Contribute to the extension of Europa Nostra’s network and the European Heritage Hub activities among heritage stakeholders (public and private) in the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East region, building on the fact that Cyprus during its long history has been often at the cross roads between Europe and countries of eastern Mediterranean and therefore today shares common tangible and intangible heritage with countries of this region.

The Cyprus Institute will primarily participate in the Europa Nostra Nicosia Hub through its Science and Technology in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Research Center (STARC). STARC will contribute to a number of areas, including research on the impact of climate change on cultural heritage, sustainable and green development, efforts against looting and illicit trafficking of cultural goods, exploring health in the past, human-environment interactions, the nature and impact of human mobility, digital/big data, technological solutions and innovations, archaeological materials and technologies, and cultural heritage preservation-valorization dissemination to the general public, including within the context of tourism.

Europa Nostra is the European voice of civil society committed to safeguarding and promoting cultural and natural heritage. It is a pan-European federation of heritage NGOs, supported by a wide network of public bodies, private companies and individuals, covering more than 40 countries, including Cyprus. Founded in 1963, Europa Nostra, is recognised as the most representative heritage movement in Europe with its wide network as the strongest asset. In line with its mission, Europa Nostra aims to strengthen its existing network while pursuing efforts to enlarge, diversify and rejuvenate it by reaching out to a younger audience and actors in the wider heritage fields.