What We Do

Participatory Mapping

Why?

Although Messolonghi has a rich culture it has never been fully mapped and disseminated neither inside nor outside the city’s walls. In order to do so, the question “What is Messolonghi for you?” addressed to the locals has to be answered. Making the locals the actual city branders through participatory processes and democratic methods of decision making including dialogue, consultations, partnerships and networks is the goal of this project. “Messolonghi by Locals” is an initiative empowering collectiveness in the local community of Messolonghi by giving citizens a voice to express what their city is for them, to map it in the form of cultural routes and then disseminate it to the rest of the world.

What?

The participatory mapping by locals currently covers a wide range of different themes:

Who?

Cultural routes are created by individuals of all ages and backgrounds, educational institutions, local associations etc. who team up in order to create a cultural map according to the interest of each member.

How?

Teams create a thematic cultural route after a process of:

• Research (bibliography, interviews, onsite visits, open calls to collect information etc.)
• Documentation (video, photography, text, sound recording etc.)
• Experiential learning ( workshops, on site performances etc)
• Presentations and activities of knowledge sharing throughout the process (exhibitions, talks, etc.)
• Design and explanation of the cultural route and points of interest on a city map
• Creation of different outputs to accompany the map of the cultural route (video, photography, text, painting, sound etc.).

The Local Hub

Live the Local Experience

Messolonghi is a city in Western Greece famous for its history and the rich natural beauty of the Messolonghi-Aitoliko lagoon that surrounds it. The lagoon is one of Europe’s richest wetlands and it is the largest single lagoon in the Mediterranean.The landscape of the wider area of the wetland is a beautiful mosaic of plains, hills, islets, oak forests, cliffs and canyons. All of the above coexist in the same area and each one acts as a natural continuum of the other.

The wider region combines a rich cultural heritage and history ancient city monuments captivating landscapes and sunsets on vast horizons, traditional fishing practices, local produce, special local cuisine and warm hospitality.

Activities you can do in Messolonghi:

• Birdwatch in the lagoon and the Double Delta
• Hike on the mount Arakinthos and Varasova
• Cycle in a bike friendly city
• Canoe in the lagoon
• Ride a horse
• Meditate in nature
• Take photos of the beautiful landscape and famous sunset
• Learn about traditional methods of fishing and fish yourself,
• Eat traditional dishes and taste the famous botargo of Messologhi
• Walk on the saltpans
• Experience local traditions and festivals
• Visit archeological sites of the area
• Learn about the important history that the city carries with it
• Just chat with the locals and drink an ouzo

What are the “Live the local experiences?”

“Messolonghi by Locals” organizes experiences for travelers who want to live Messolonghi through the eyes of a local by creating tailor made experiences for travelers and connecting them to the local community.

Responsible Travel

LIVE LOCAL, THINK GLOBAL. This motto reflects the policy we have on responsible tourism. We want to reach out to citizens around the world.Choosing “Messolonghi by Locals” to organize your visit in Messolonghi, you choose a way of responsible travelling. As members of the “Messolonghi by Locals” organization, one of our biggest concerns is to secure that tourism will not affect negatively our area in an ecological and socio-cultural way, and also that the locals will mostly benefit from your travel. Our organization is local-based and all our guides and employees are locals too who will try to provide an authentic experience to you by making you become a local yourself for a few days.

But the most important thing for us, is that your presence here gives us a strong negotiation card for pressing the local authorities for the development of our area and protecting the natural environment.