The field of heritage interpretation grew out of the national parks in the USA. To this day, the practice continues to have a strong connection with parks. Some parks in Europe are actively involved in interpretive planning, media development and guide programmes. However, this varies across Europe.
The UK, for example, has a strong tradition for using interpretation in parks. On the other hand, in Norway, the field is little developed. Unfortunately, the full potential for interpretation in regional, nature and landscape parks has not yet been realized. But this could change by integrating interpretation in new ways in this category of parks. There are about 900 parks of this type across Europe.
They have a holistic approach, focusing not only on nature protection, but also on activating the cultural heritage of their regions. They also have a bottom-up approach, ensuring participation and action from a wide range of local actors. This is all well suited to Interpret Europe with its combined goals of giving natural and cultural heritage a deeper meaning and facilitating first-hand experiences. In this webinar, we will explore the connection between parks and interpretation using Norway as a case.
