Good practice:

Mesés Hetés/Fabulous Hatés

Mesés Hetés Greenway aimed to map, preserve and utilize the valuable natural and cultural heritage and landscape of Hetés region across the Hungarian-Slovenian border.
As an alternative regional trail of Eurovelo13 – Iron Curtain cycle route, the project intended to link communities of Hetés belonging to the two sides of the border, preserving cultural values, rich traditions and communities. Landscape values have been revealed through community walks. Newly re-started community programs make citizens active and engaged. The greenway connects 10 settlements, the EUROVELO 13 and tourism hubs.
The activity (Borderless cooperation of local communities for the landscape heritage of „Fabulous” Hetés) has been coordinated by the Greenways Methodological Association. The application won the 2014 National Landscape Award and competed for Hungary for the 2015 Landscape Award of the Council of Europe.
Actors:
Zöldutak Módszertani Egyesület (Greenways Methodological
Association);
Vasfüggöny Út Egyesület (Iron Curtain Trail Association);
Rédicsi Közös Önkormányzati Hivatal (Local government of Rédics);
Nemzeti Agrárszaktanácsadási, Képzési és Vidékfejlesztési Intézet
(National Agricultural Advisory, Educational and Rural Development
Institute)

14.000 EUR for Community development and continously receiving government support mainly for marketing

“Winter evening discussions” - informal meetings served community building and cultural development.
• On the Hungarian side of the border, there was a detailed assessment and analysis of settlement planning considering the unique landscape assets
• A proposal was drawn up for the integration of unique landscape assets into settlement planning agendas
The application won the 2014 National Landscape Award and competed for Hungary for the 2015 Landscape Award of the Council of Europe.

Bringing together cross-border communities is a challenging task. Utilizing the common historical roots, traditions and landscape values, these assets can act as bridge between them. The practice is applicable for regions having similar opportunities and character.