Findings of the Ethnographic Fieldwork

A detailed ethnographic analysis is part of the strategic plan implementation, through a multidisciplinary scientific Research Agenda. In this phase of the MaNet project the fieldwork data was focused on information that would contribute to the design of the strategic plan, representing the local communities’ aspirations ‘to assess spiritual as well as social values’. Thus the territory was researched through multi sensory perspectives and interviews, which were planned to cover a range of issues, composed by a mixed synthesis of informants. This ‘flexible menu of ethnographic and public involvement techniques’ reveals the perceptions of the locals regarding the values and knowledge that is necessary in order ‘to modernize and develop their economies’ (Torre 2002:20-23). From a total of 36 interviews, 18 were conducted in different places of Konitsa’s Mastorochoria and areas of interest in south Albania. Key informants were 14 people of whom 7 were involved in administrational schemes with decision-making or even political power. Although there were very few Masters still working and even fewer alive, we managed to interview 7 craftsmen, 4 of whom were almost centenarians. Most of those interviewed were over 50 years old, mainly pensioners, and only a 19% were aged below 35. A small percentage of 25% were women, but their narratives were very important, illustrating various perspectives of the social and economic life of the people that lived in Mastorochoria villages. Overall, the participant observation during the fieldwork gave us the opportunity to identify values beyond those with outstanding significance. Additionally this experiential approach revealed ‘how the values of individuals and communities are constructed with regard to cultural heritage’ and the importance to integrate them in the MaNet Strategic Plan. The true ecological reflections of the local society stressed the importance of the use value referring to the cost of land and the real cost of the abandonment of the primary sector. Although most of the people we came in contact with recognize the monumental, historical, artistic and aesthetic values of their traditional settlements, they give priority to economic values that have the capacity to reactivate the territory socially and materially. According to these priorities, they are determined to accept the requirement of ‘destruction of a monument’ due to use and newness values. Conflicting values coexist and carry a different weight regarding the different stake- holders’ perspectives. This fact constitutes one major challenge for the MaNet project so that smart sustainable and inclusive growth may become a realistic alternative (Torre 2002:13; Avrami, Mason & Torre 2000:10; Riegl 1982:39-42).