Village Hosts
Description
by John Thackara:
"New projects, and new livelihoods, are sprouting up among Europe’s multitude of small villages. These activities range from positive-impact tourism, nature reconnection, and ecological restoration – to adventure sports, farm-shares, learning journeys, wellness retreats, heritage trails, and more.
A job title has been invented to describe the valuable people who start such projects: Village Hosts. And a two year training programme – the Open School for Village Hosts (OSVH) – has been launched that will increase their number in the years ahead.
Village Hosts seek out and connect assets that may already exist in a community – but are unknown, or isolated: people, places, buildings, and skills. They connect these neglected assets in events, services and enterprises.
Many such people are needed. In Italy alone, 5,000 small villages (those with 5,000 or fewer inhabitants) have been declining; in Spain, 3,500; in Serbia, 4,700 – to name just three of the countries represented in this new project."
(https://www.villagehosts.eu/new-life-europe-small-villages/)