A new festival on the Environment and sustainable development breathed life into the verdant OASIS former camping site of Elefsina.
The First Ecoculture Festival ever held in Elefsina and the wider region delighted visitors of all ages last weekend, with discussions, gastronomic meetings, bicycle routes, walks, picnics, music and many other parallel activities that lasted from morning until late at night.
Mystery _50 Ecoculture Festival^, the First Ecoculture Festival ever held in Elefsina and the wider region, was completed with great success on the Weekend of September 24 & 25, at the forming camping site, OASIS, an area of rare natural beauty on the outskirts of the city. More than 1000 residents and visitors of Elefsina, of all ages, attended this great celebration of the environment, marking the beginning of an important action for both the city and the organization. The aim of 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture is for the Ecoculture Festival^ to be a trigger for the establishment of a model festival on the environment, ecology and sustainability, in the city of Elefsina.
The following honored the Festival with their presence: The Mayor of Elefsina, Argyris Economou, the Deputy Mayor of 2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture, Fotis Tatakis, the Deputy Mayor in charge of Sanitation, Recycling and Green Spaces, Leonidas Pappas, the Deputy Mayor of Technical Services and Urban Planning, Athanasios Mavrogiannis, the General Secretary of the Municipality of Elefsina, Giannis Panagiotoulias, the Director of the TITAN factory, Andreas Samothrakis, the President of the Municipal Cultural Center of Aspropyrgos, Georgia Pilichou, Municipal Councilors, environmental scientists such as the Professor Emeritus of Environmental Chemistry and Oceanography at the University of Athens, Michalis Skoullos, journalists, representatives of environmental and local cultural associations, members of the Chess Cultural Association and the Greek Mountaineering Association of Elefsina, residents and visitors of the city.
The Festival’s programme
The festival featured the Ecoculture Dialogues, a series of interesting talks and discussions on sustainable innovation and the agrifood sector, environmental awareness, education and creative planning, with the participation of researchers, academics, environmental associations and other actors. For more information on the speakers and their remarks, click here.
Artistic events, as well as various parallel activities complemented the Festival’s programme, such as cycling routes on the train tracks (railbiking) in collaboration with Rail Biking in Greece, cycling routes through the city in collaboration with the Be bike shop, terminating at Kostis Velonis’ visual arts installation “straw falling on concrete floors” at the Old Olive Mill, with screenings of excerpts from films and documentaries on the environment, such as Filippos Koutsaftis’ Mourning Rock and Shipwrecked by Marianna Economou.
Furthermore, Mystery_38 Music from the Houses, took placeunder the directorial curation of Georgia Mavragani, which involved on-site tours in the Pontian settlement of Elefsina with selected music flowing into the public space through the doors and windows of their houses. This was directly followed by Mystery_49 Symposium #2 – Black Sea,an experiential journey around the flavors and customs of Pontos, with a main focus on cultural exchange and the promotion of the gastronomic culture of the place, in cooperation with the Pontian Association of Elefsina “Nea Trapezounta.”
The celebratory weekend was completed with a picnic accompanied by music from local DJs and bands from Elefsina and the surrounding area, which excited young people (of all ages). Specifically, the following participated: dj Eleni Peppa, Gustavo Brings (Vangelis Economou, Giannis Tsitos, Stergios Liouras), MULTi●CULTi (Oleg Dergatsiov, Iraklis Tsopelakis).
Parallel Actions for people of all ages
Our young friends had the opportunity to participate in Mystery_46 Modular Gardens, an inspired gardening workshop, where they constructed horticultural units with the use of new technologies, at the Old Railway Station of Elefsina, in collaboration with Olivia Kotsifa (Synfablab) and the team of Decode Fab Lab. Furthermore, at OASIS they participated in workshops by the Paidefsis Kids Academy, creating unique artworks.
2023 Eleusis Open Farm Days
Lastly, the launch of action 2023 Eleusis Open Farm Days was announced, a collaboration between 2023 Eleusis and Med Culture, with local West Attica farms, wineries, mills and olive presses, being mapped for the first time and welcoming visitors until October 2, while also presenting their products.
Designing the future of OASIS
Mystery_41 Design Campus was announced as part of the Ecoculture Festival. It is a participatory workshop for the city’s residents and visitors, which will kick off next November, with the goal of designing the future use of OASIS as a center for sustainable urban development and the harmonious coexistence with nature. More information will be released soon.
A new model educational institution: Elefsina Open University
At the same time, the establishment and operation of another legacy action was announced, that of Mystery_7 Elefsina Open University, in the presence of the Vice Rector of the University of Patras, in charge of Research & Development, Panagiotis Dimopoulos and members of the scientific committee. The aim of the new institution, which will include a rich educational program on the critical themes of “Environment and Health” and “Cultural Policy,” is to cultivate free thinking and provide a high level of scientific knowledge to every interested resident or visitor of Elefsina. The action’s second information day is organized as part of the action Myster_56 Culture 2030 Meeting, which will take place between November 10 and 13.
A surprise video from Time Circus
During the two-day event, the Belgian collective Timecircus, which started on foot from Antwerp last May, and a few days ago arrived in the Hungarian city of Veszprém, the “sister” European Capital of Culture of Elefsina for 2023, send a video-greeting, especially for the festival. Crossing Europe on a Landship, which is propelled forward only by human power, and sending a strong message for the protection of the environment, Timecircus, after passing through the next major stop on their route, Timișoara (Romania), aim to arrive on foot in Elefsina in February 2023 and participate in the Opening Ceremony of 2023 Eleusis, marking the longest procession in the history of the city from antiquity to the present day. Watch the video here.
2023 Eleusis European Capital of Culture
Website: 2023eleusis.eu
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E-mail: info@2023eleusis.eu
