Projects
Work in Progress
Exhibition “Mortar. Science and history in fragments”
Communicating Tangible and Intangible Heritage
SECreTour
2022 – 2024
The realization of the interactive itinerant exhibition has been supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) as part of the Agorà funding scheme. It is currently diplayed at the Convent of St. Jhon in Müstair (CH) and will be moved to Castelgrande in Bellinzona in May 2024.
2023 –
In collaboration with the Organizzazione Turistica del Mendrisiotto e Basso Ceresio and with the UNESCO Chair of the University of Genova (Italy), several activities have been launched in order to better understand and communicate the Holy Week processions in Mendrisio, inscribed in 2019 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, as well as the Monte san Giorgio, inscribed in 2003 as a UNESCO natural World Heritage Site.
2024 –
The UNESCO Chair is a partner in the European project SECreTour, which stands for Sustainable, Engaging, and CREative Tourism aiming for rural and remote areas’ betterment. It prioritizes addressing local communities’ needs, perceptions, and expectations. The project views tourism as a means to enhance income and diversify rural economies, while also spotlighting and honoring rural areas and their inhabitants.
Concluded
Destination Evolution System (DESy)
AUDITORIUM – culturAl sUstainability inDIcaTors fOr heRItage toUrism Management
Machu Picchu – Seen through the eyes of Fernando Astete
2019 – 2023
DESy (short for Digital Destination Evolution System) was an Interreg project between the border areas of Switzerland and Italy and was created to collect and analyze tourist information using AI.
2020 – 2022
As a Mobility Grant 2020 receiver, “AUDITORIUM” was a bilateral research cooperation with the Latin American Region: The State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).
2019 – 2022
It was an international and interdisciplinary project for the creation of a website and photo archive, designed to increase awareness about the cultural and natural values of the World Heritage Site Machu Picchu in Perù, and to allow tourists to get a deeper understanding of the richness and complexity of the management of such site.
Interreg Project “MARKS”
Erasmus+ “ICT for Sustainable Tourism Development”
iWareBatik
2019 – 2022
The MARKS Interreg project aimed at increasing the attractiveness of the cross-border area between Lake Como and Lake Lugano in the Intelvi Valley.
2019 – 2022
Together with Wyższa Szkoła Informatyki i Zarządzania w Rzeszowie in Rzeszow (Poland, project leader), Univerzitet u Novom Sadu in Novi Sad (Serbia) and Hochschule für nachhaltige Entwicklung Eberswalde in Eberswalde (Germany), the UNESCO Chair in ICT to develop and promote sustainable tourism in World Heritage Sites of USI – Università della Svizzera italiana, ran the Erasmus+ project “Information and Communication Technologies for Sustainable Tourism Development”.
2017 – 2022
The iWareBatik website and the corresponding mobile app, available for iOS and Android devices, serve to help international and Indonesian Batik stakeholders to identify the variety of Batik textiles, the philosophical values behind the motif, its place of origin, and useful information about local producers. Since Batik defines the culture of each region in Indonesia, iWareBatik also features information about Indonesian tourism related to Batik in the 34 provinces across Indonesia.
#faces4heritage
Exhibtion “Journeys Through Our Fragile Heirtage”
Switzerland Travel Academy
2015 – 2019
#facesforheritage was a social media awareness campaign to to sensitize society about the importance of preserving and defending heritage as a means for promoting culture and enhancing mutual understanding, thus, to build durable peace.
2018
The photo exhibition “Journeys Through Our Fragile Heritage: discover, preserve, transmit” was created by UNESCO in collaboration with Wikimedia. The USI UNESCO Chair displayed it in Lugano.
2016 – 2017
Designed and developed together with the USI eLab Service and the Swiss National Tourism Office, the Switzerland Travel Academy is a free online course aimed at travel agents and tour professionals interested in becoming a Certified Switzerland Travel Expert.
Re-design of the Swiss UNESCO Commission online communication
Online promotion of the event Pilgertag 20.05.2017
#patrimonio_km0
2016 – 2017
The Chair received the mandate by the Swiss Commission for UNESCO to analyse, evaluate and re-design its online communication, consisting of the website, the newsletter and social media channels. The analytical stage was conducted in September – November 2016. The re-design stage started in January 2017, and was completed in September 2017.
2016 – 2017
In September 2016, the Chair received the mandate from the Swiss association «Les Amis du Chemin de Saint-Jacques / Die Freunde des Jakobsweges» to design and implement an online campaign to promote an event dedicated to the Swiss paths of the Saint James pilgrimage way, which took take place on May 20th, 2017.
2014 – 2015
The project was launched in October 2014 as a spin-off of #faces4heritage, with a focus on the promotion of local heritage (Swiss and Northern Italy WHS) rather than on the destruction of heritage.
WHACY
Ticino WHS Apps
Website “Fondazione Svizzera Pro Venezia”
2014 –
The Chair in collaboration with the Hospitality Youth Initiative (HYI), a non-profit organization in South Africa with support of the Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) is designing an awareness campaign for Southern African Development Community (SADC).
2012 – 2013
In 2012 ORANGE SA has donated its Swiss Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) budget for a project to design and develop a mobile application for the two UNESCO WHSs in Ticino, i.e. the natural site of Monte San Giorgio and the cultural site of the Castles of Bellinzona.
2013
In close collaboration with webatelier.net and others, the Chair has contributed to developing the new website of the Foundation.
Destination Evolution System (DESy)
2019 – 2023
DESy (short for Digital Destination Evolution System) was an Interreg project between the border areas of Switzerland and Italy and has been created to collect and analyze tourist information using AI.
AUDITORIUM – culturAl sUstainability inDIcaTors fOr heRItage toUrism Management
2020 – 2022
As a Mobility Grant 2020 receiver, “AUDITORIUM” was a bilateral research cooperation with the Latin American Region: The State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI)
Machu Picchu - Seen through the eyes of Fernando Astete
2019 – 2022
“Machu Picchu Seen Through the Eyes of Fernando Astete” was an international and interdisciplinary project for the creation of a website and photo archive, designed to increase awareness on the cultural and natural values of the World Heritage Site Machu Picchu and to allow tourists to get a deeper understanding of the richness and complexity of the management of such site.
Interreg Project "MARKS"
2019 – 2022
The MARKS Interreg project aimed at increasing the attractiveness of the cross-border area between Lake Como and Lake Lugano in the Intelvi Valley.
Erasmus+ "ICT for Sustainable Tourism Development"
2019 – 2022
Together with Wyższa Szkoła Informatyki i Zarządzania w Rzeszowie in Rzeszow (Poland, project leader), Univerzitet u Novom Sadu in Novi Sad (Serbia) and Hochschule für nachhaltige Entwicklung Eberswalde in Eberswalde (Germany), the UNESCO Chair in ICT to develop and promote sustainable tourism in World Heritage Sites of USI –Università della Svizzera italiana, ran the Erasmus+ project “Information and Communication Technologies for Sustainable Tourism Development”.
iWareBatik
2017 – 2022
The iWareBatik website and the corresponding mobile app, available for iOS and Android devices, serve to help international and Indonesian Batik stakeholders to identify the variety of Batik textiles, the philosophical values behind the motif, its place of origin, and useful information about local producers. Since Batik defines the culture of each region in Indonesia, iWareBatik also features information about Indonesian tourism related to Batik in the 34 provinces across Indonesia.
#faces4heritage
2015 – 2019
#facesforheritage was a social media awareness campaign to to sensitize society about the importance of preserving and defending heritage as a means for promoting culture and enhancing mutual understanding, thus, to build durable peace.
Exhibition "Journeys Through Our Fragile Heritage"
2018
The photo exhibition “Journeys Through Our Fragile Heritage: discover, preserve, transmit” was created by UNESCO in collaboration with Wikimedia.
Switzerland Travel Academy
2016 – 2017
Designed and developed together with the USI eLab Service and the Swiss National Tourism Office, the Switzerland Travel Academy is a free online course aimed at travel agents and tour professionals interested in becoming a Certified Switzerland Travel Expert.
Re-design of the Swiss UNESCO Commission online communication
2016 – 2017
The Chair received the mandate by the Swiss Commission for UNESCO to analyse, evaluate and re-design its online communication, consisting of the website, the newsletter and social media channels. The analytical stage was conducted in September – November 2016. The re-design stage started in January 2017, and was completed in September 2017.
Online promotion of the event Pilgertag 20.05.2017
2016 – 2017
In September 2016, the Chair received the mandate from the Swiss association «Les Amis du Chemin de Saint-Jacques / Die Freunde des Jakobsweges» to design and implement an online campaign to promote an event dedicated to the Swiss paths of the Saint James pilgrimage way, which took take place on May 20th, 2017.
Online promotion of the event Pilgertag 20.05.2017
2014 – 2015
The project was launched in October 2014 as a spin-off of #faces4heritage, with a focus on the promotion of local heritage (Swiss and Northern Italy WHS) rather than on the destruction of heritage
WHACY
2014 – 2015
The Chair in collaboration with the Hospitality Youth Initiative (HYI), a non-profit organization in South Africa with support of the Regional Tourism Organization of Southern Africa (RETOSA) is designing an awareness campaign for Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Ticino WHSs Apps
2012 – 2013
In 2012 ORANGE SA has donated its Swiss Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) budget for a project to design and develop a mobile application for the two UNESCO WHSs in Ticino, i.e. the natural site of Monte San Giorgio and the cultural site of the Castles of Bellinzona.
Website "Fondazione Svizzera Pro Venezia"
2013
In close collaboration with webatelier.net and others, the Chair has contributed to developing the new website of the Foundation.