IPHES-CERCA receives funding from the Generalitat to foster public engagement with the heritage of the Conca de Barberà
The COPATRIMONI project, led by IPHES-CERCA in collaboration with the Consell Comarcal de la Conca de Barberà, aims to strengthen the link between research and the local community in order to collectively preserve the prehistoric archaeological heritage o
The Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES-CERCA) has been selected as one of the beneficiaries of the IMPACTE 2024 call from the Generalitat de Catalunya, aimed at boosting the social impact of knowledge generated by universities and research centres across the region. The awarded project, titled “Citizenship and education to preserve the heritage of the Conca de Barberà – COPATRIMONI”, has received funding of €20,000, of which nearly €5,000 is co-funded by the beneficiary institution.
This grant is part of a competitive call launched by the Agència de Gestió d’Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca (AGAUR), which seeks to promote more open, participatory research that addresses social needs. Nineteen projects from across Catalonia have been selected in this edition.
A partnership between research, local authorities, and citizens
The COPATRIMONI project is based on a key premise: archaeological heritage can only be valued and protected if citizens are aware of it and feel responsible for it. To this end, it proposes an integrated strategy of education, co-creation, and communication that links the research carried out by IPHES-CERCA with the cultural and heritage promotion work of the Consell Comarcal de la Conca de Barberà. The project also involves the Centre de Recursos Pedagògics de la Conca de Barberà and the Museu Comarcal de la Conca de Barberà, with the goal of raising public awareness and knowledge about the region’s prehistoric heritage and encouraging its preservation as an educational, cultural, touristic, and social resource that benefits the whole community.
The aim is to build a knowledge community around local prehistoric heritage, involving schoolchildren, young people, and the general public. Through participatory activities, workshops, educational actions, and the creation of materials, the project seeks to raise collective awareness of the value and fragility of heritage, and to promote its social use to foster understanding, awareness, and active public engagement in its preservation.
The project also includes the development of indicators and the collection of evidence to measure its impact.
A commitment to social impact through prehistoric research
This initiative reflects IPHES-CERCA’s commitment to transferring scientific knowledge to society and actively contributing to the social value of cultural heritage, with the aim of supporting local development.
The COPATRIMONI project also aligns with IPHES-CERCA’s strategy for knowledge transfer and social impact, which includes objectives such as broadening access to research results and promoting citizen involvement in the conservation of archaeological heritage.