Take care of small memorials
The preservation and restoration of tangible and intangible
cultural heritage is dealt with by various heritage institutions, be it state,
private, municipal or civic associations, which often seek the help of
volunteers. If you decide to get involved in volunteering in the field of
cultural heritage protection, you will have a wide range of options. Examples
can be secular monuments (folk architecture, castle ruins, castles and their
gardens and parks, castles and their gardens and parks, curiosities), technical
monuments (mills, craft workshops, mining tunnels, bridges, railways,
observatories), church monuments ( churches, synagogues, monasteries, chapels,
belfries, belfries, calvaries, statues of saints on the borders of villages,
crosses by the roads, cemeteries), monuments (statues, memorials, memorial
graves) or conservation areas (urban conservation areas, open-air museums).
Get involved
If you want to help in the field of heritage conservation and have a specific location selected, first think about how much time you can devote to volunteering. Will it be a one-time activity, an irregularly recurring activity or a regular activity? Carefully consider volunteer opportunities and your own abilities and skills. Keep in mind that the majority of volunteer work in conservation and restoration involves physical work (cleaning, mowing, felling trees, raking, painting, masonry work, excavation work, collecting building materials, archaeological research under the supervision of an archaeologist – removing debris, cleaning archaeological probes, sorting and washing of archaeological finds).
If you know the administrator or owner of the building, you should contact him and consult with him about the possibilities of volunteer activities. It can be one-day events, weekends with accommodation or camping, or camps (shorter or longer, national or international, organized especially during the summer holidays). During events, the instructions of the administrator/owner must be followed – both work and safety.
But what to do if the place is not actively managed by any organization – for example, you want to restore a forgotten cemetery, a dilapidated chapel or a cross by the way?
At the cadastral office (online or offline) you can find the owner of the building and the land. For example, the municipal office or the parish can help with this. Based on this finding, visit or contact the owner and present your vision. For example, clearing overgrown greenery in a long-forgotten cemetery, removing trash, erecting fallen monuments, repairing fencing.
Once you get the green light, you can get to work. Prepare the necessary tools (saws, axes, pruning shears, pruning shears, shovels, spades, pickaxes, garbage bags, container for removed leaves) and keep in mind that the removal of trees is subject to permission under certain conditions, inform yourself in advance about the current legislative requirements (especially in connection with the circumference of the trunk or the growing season). At the same time, do not forget to ensure the removal of biomass or waste, they must not be left in place.
Document all work regularly. Photos showing the progress of the work and the final condition will be very useful.
It is also important to provide refreshments and drinks for volunteers. If they feel good, they will be happy to lend a hand next time.
If you have succeeded in revitalizing a certain area or object (cleaning it of garbage or weeds, repairing or painting), follow-up care will also be necessary. Otherwise, regrowth or other damage will occur. Therefore, do not forget to check the site at least once a month and maintain it regularly.
If your work is successful and you want to inform the neighborhood about it, place an information board in the area (with the permission of the administrator/owner) or a label with a QR code (with a link to social networks or the website), involve the residents of the village and do not forget to use social networks.
How else can you help?
Many managers welcome the help of volunteers to organize tours for visitors to the site. If you know foreign languages, they may be happy to let you interpret for foreign tourists. Last but not least, it can be administrative help, for example in the management of websites and social networks, writing and translating texts, sorting and processing photos or graphic editing of various leaflets and information materials.
