BreadTime

“BreadTime” (BrotZeit) focuses on the cultural sustainability and the manifold agricultural and manual practices of the cultivation and processing of grains and the production of bread. The goal of the project was the analysis, protection and documentation of local knowledge and practice related to the immaterial cultural heritage of “Lesachtal Bread”.

The project was organised along with the HLW Hermagor, the Education Centre Lesachtal and local associations. The collaboration with the schools allows the intergenerational transfer of know-how and direct inclusion of students in traditional practices concerning bread.

Living traditions change in quotidian action, integrating the new and the foreign, altering with living situations – these traditions are thereby shaped anew again and again. This dynamic process of transfer and application of local knowledge and practice, as well as the meaning of these living traditions for the local community, was at the centre of the research focus. The reflection of intergenerational encounters with local cultural heritage requires a manifold process of communication and interaction; it culminates in the individual and collective learning experiences of the participants.

In order to treat the tradition of the “Lesachtal Bread” culture in a contemporary and future-oriented way, suitable means of communication and performance were developed and realised in collaboration with local activists. An interdisciplinary team from areas such as sociology, education, history and landscape planning worked on the project “BreadTime” (BrotZeit). The project itself is transdisciplinary – reaching beyond science – through its collaboration with schools, community and local association.