Overlooked heritage of Albania: chronicle of rescue, conservation and com-munity involvement at Great Prespa Lake

Abstract

[EN] A set of actions, concerning conservation policies, have been undertaken in Great Prespa Lake Region, Albania during the last years. The activities, as presented in this paper, are part of a project driven by European Heritage Volunteers in partnership with the GFA Consulting Group, the Transboundary Biosphere Reserve Prespa Project and with the collaboration of Polytechnic University of Valencia. This joined partnership has made possible the creation of a document “Guidelines for interventions at vernacular architecture at Great Prespa Lake” as following explained. The guidelines are finally aiming to all the villages of the this Biosphere Reserve of UNESCO, but the result has been possible thanks specially to the study – in detail – of one of the rural communities located in the region – Zaroshke. The village has been selected and analyzed as a possible pilot project for conservation polices and community involvement, during the summer of 2021, thanks to the participation of local communities and international volunteers (students and young professionals) trough the systematic documentation of vernacular architecture of the village.