img. from the welcome presentation at WEAVE kick-off meeting.

Today 14th April 2021 the kick-off meeting of WEAVE takes place online, hosted by project coordinator IN2. This project aims to develop a framework to link the tangible and intangible heritage of cultural communities, safeguarding the rich and invaluable cultural heritage which they represent. All partners are now reviewing the tasks foreseen in the project and planning for initial work. The project officer Ms. Kyriaki Tragouda of CINEA – HaDEA executive agency of the European Commission is also participating in the meeting.

WEAVE will contribute to preserving for future generations the richness of the European identity and its cultural plurality. In particular, the project will aggregate over 5,000 new high-quality records to Europeana related to the rich and invaluable cultural heritage of minority cultural communities, and showcase these collections in a set of engaging editorials and a virtual exhibition. The project will carry out several capacity building activities to develop a closer connection between cultural heritage institutions (CHIs), minority cultural communities and Europeana.

group photo WEAVE kick-off

Additionally, WEAVE will develop a set of open and reusable tools which will employ a mix of AI, machine learning, natural language processing, big data analysis and innovative interface engineering. The toolkit will allow the management of annotations, semi-automatic recognition of specific gestures and movements and visualisation of performances and 3D models. Finally, it will offer training, capacity building and guidelines with a focus on proper handling of immaterial cultural heritage and working with vulnerable and marginalised communities.

WEAVE is a Europeana Generic Services project, and it is co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union.