On Thursday 13 February, PromoTurismoFVG and the EGTC GO presented the feasibility study for the tourist development and enhancement of the historical and cultural heritage of the Italian side of Mount Sabotino. The presentation was held in the spaces of the GO! Centre in Gorizia. 

The study, carried out by Marco Pascoli (president of the association ‘I luoghi della Grande Guerra nel Friuli Collinare’, director of the Great War Museum of Ragogna, historical expert and Media Montagna guide) has been promoted by PromoTurismoFVG as lead partner of the Interreg ITA-SLO Walk of Peace + capitalisation project and by EGTC GO, partner of the Interreg ITA-SLO project BeWoP - Beyond Walk of Peace: from cross-border historical research and cultural heritage to European Trail and stories.The main objective of the analysis conducted by Marco Pascoli is to propose, on the basis of historical, environmental and legal evaluations, the best solutions that will make it possible to initiate the executive planning and interventions necessary to make the Italian side of Mount Sabotino a suitable destination for hikers, enthusiasts and visitors, enhancing its historical, cultural and environmental heritage.

Similarly, the interventions will make it possible to include the routes within the Walk of Peace, the itinerary dedicated to the sites of the Great War on the Isonzo front, which is over 500 kilometres long and already includes the Slovenian side, the peak and the crest of the mountain, exactly on the border between Italy and Slovenia. Thanks to this first study and thanks to the synergies already in place between the partnership of the two ITA-SLO Interreg projects (in addition to PromoTurismoFVG and EGTC GO, the partners also include the Fundacija Poti Miru v Posočju, lead partner of BeWoP, the Posoški Razvojni Center, the ZRC SAZU, the association èStoria and the Municipalities of Duino Aurisina, Komen and Miren - Kostanjevica) it will be possible to proceed in the coming months with the realisation of a first batch of activities and interventions to improve the accessibility from the Italian side of the mountain and enhance its historical, cultural and natural heritage.

BeWoP project, in addition to the preparation of the project documentation for the future securing and arrangement of the military access road to the sacred area, also envisages the adoption of an executive and feasible project for the valorisation and arrangement of the material and non-material heritage linked to the Great War, which is located on the Italian side of the mountain and requires a connection with Slovenia in order to become an integral part of the ‘Walk of Peace’ (caves, fortifications, walkways and trenches, inscriptions, etc.) and the hiking trails necessary to reach them. The work will be carried out at a later stage, with further projects currently being defined. However, BeWoP envisages work that can be implemented immediately by the EGTC GO, including:

- the arrangement and improvement of the viability and accessibility of the sacred area through the cleaning of the roadbed, drainage channels and greenery along the municipal road that leads from Villa Vasi, in the locality of San Mauro, to the car park, from where the various paths lead off
- the improvement of the visibility and knowability of the area with the placement of signs for Mount Sabotino in various positions between Gorizia and San Mauro;
- the definition of the contents and the placement of tourist and information panels on the area's historical-cultural and environmental heritage and geomorphological features, in line with the graphic lines and settings of the ‘Walk of Peace
- the cleaning of green areas and the more general landscaping of the area
- the creation of two murals/graffiti on the retaining wall with the theme of war and peace and the cross-border territory, created by two young local artists.
It should be noted that Walk of Peace+ has a total value of 795,000 euro, of which about 250,000 is directly managed by PromoTurismoFVG. It is an Interreg Italy-Slovenia capitalisation project that started in October 2023 and will end in September this year.

BeWoP, on the other hand, has a total value of almost EUR 1.3 million, of which EUR 195,000 is directly managed by EGTC GO. Project activities started in April 2024 and will end in October 2026.
Peace, historical memory, the valorisation of the tangible and intangible cultural heritage linked to the Great War, and the peaceful coexistence among European peoples represent the ties and founding values on which both projects were conceived and are being developed. The Sabotino enhancement initiatives also represent an important opportunity to promote cultural tourism linked to the First World War sites, as well as to develop sustainable and slow forms of tourism in the entire border area during and after the GO! 2025 events and celebrations. The two projects are part of a broader European network of public bodies, cultural institutions and associations that intend to promote the values of peace and historical memory linked to the First World War as cornerstones of the integration process and of the construction of the Common European House, also favouring the inclusion of the ‘Walk of Peace’ route among the cultural routes recognised by the Council of Europe.

In this sense, partners associated with BeWoP and WoP+ include public and private entities from Slovenia (Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Defence, Slovenian Tourist Board, ZRC SAZU and National Liberation Museum in Maribor), Italy (European Wildlife Management Association, Italian Historical War Museum, M9 Museo del ‘900, Friends of the Carnic Alps Association, Friuli Storia Association, VEGAL), Belgium (Flanders Field Museum) and Poland (Euroregion Karpacki and Jagielloonian University Krakow).