DREIS: Bridging Tradition and Innovation for Sustainable Tourism

DREIS is a project focused on exploring the role of intangible cultural heritage, such as traditional crafts and ancient knowledge of natural materials, in enhancing sustainable product production and bolstering culture-based tourism in Kvam. Vestlandsforsking and the Bioregion Institute are collaborating with cultural managers, cultural mediators, and artisans at the Hardanger og Voss museum (HVM), Hardanger Fartøyvernsenter (HFS), and the culture and business department in Kvamherad to co-produce knowledge.

The project involves collecting and organizing data on available biomaterials in Kvam, specifically examining local fiber materials like raw wool from Old Norse spelsau, horsetail, flax, linden, and nettle. These materials can be utilized in various forms of craft production, particularly in producing natural rope at HFS, potentially replacing imported hemp fibers from China. HFS aims to increase rope production at its ropeway, creating equally robust and functional natural rope with a lower climate footprint than the current hemp rope.

Different natural fibers in use at Hardanger Fartøyvernsenter

Design-driven innovation processes will be employed to co-create and prototype at least two new goods or products made from local bio-raw materials, intended for the new visitor center at HFS. These design sketches showcase the potential for product development based on traditional rope-making crafts, serving as both a tourist attraction and a cultural dissemination tool for the museum.

Traditional Lusplatting

DREIS also introduces several innovations, including a simple database of readily available bio-raw materials in Kvam for use in craft, local food, and small-scale production. Vestlandsforskning is developing Håndverksløypa, a digital map highlighting craft-based tourism experiences to promote cultural tourism in Kvam. Additionally, new sustainability indicators for craft products are being developed and will be incorporated into a new methodology for sustainability analysis.

The overarching goal of DREIS is to increase sustainable value creation within agriculture, trade, design, craft/small-scale production, and culture-based tourism in Kvam.

 

Categories
Explorative research, design thinking, early-stage prototyping

Delivery
Research on a selection natural fibers for rope making
Value chain map, historic and current
State-of-the-art
Instigating early prototypes with production partners
Product concepts

Timeline
2023

Client
Vestlandsforskning
Hardanger og Voss Museum
Kvam Herad Kommune

Research team
Siv Støldal
Tone Berge

Funded by
RFF Vestland – Forskingsrådet Regionalt kvalifiseringsprosjekt