In 2023, Management Organization of Trakia Tourism Region (MOTTR) successfully submitted a project proposal to the Erasmus+ KA122-ADU program (Short-term projects for adult mobility and training) Call 2023, which was approved and funded.

The main objective of the project is:

Developing competences of professionals in museums in Trakia tourism region.

Sub-objectives:

Acquisition of new technological solutions by museum professionals to improve visitor experiences, data collection and analysis, and the development of new strategies. This will help them better understand their audience and improve the effectiveness of their presentations. Development of networking skills and collaboration with other museum professionals to help individuals expand their perspectives and gain new ideas. Collaboration in networks at both transnational and national levels. Improvement of skills for effective communication.

Main activities:

Informational meeting and recruitment of participants; Creation of a survey and research among museum visitors; Promotion of museums and initiatives organized within them; Organization and implementation of mobility in Italy – observation of real workplaces in museums – May 2024; Presentation of the experience from mobility and surveys – November 2024.

MOTTR organizes presentations and seminars involving a wide range of representatives from its members, including students and professionals from universities and municipalities. Mobility participants will present their observations, applicability, possible joint initiatives, and prospects.

Participants will receive Europass certificates.

The opportunity to participate in the project was announced among potential participants through a scheduled informational meeting at the museums. All candidates must submit autobiographies and motivational letters within the specified deadline.

The commission will make a selection of 20 + 2 reserves based on the criteria:

• 2 years’ minimum experience in a museum, with a requirement of higher education,
• motivation for improvement,
• proficiency in English. Minimum level after training in OLS – B1.

The initial selection will be based on documents, followed by interviews.

The partner from the Italian side is Associazione Most, Italy Region Piemonte. The association (hosting organization) is responsible for accommodation, meals, and local transportation in Italy during the mobility. Participants will be supported by experts from the hosting organization and MOTTR, both in the training process and regarding the cultural program and assistance with local travel, communications, health, and other matters.

Integration of the results of mobility activities into the work of MOTTR will be achieved through:

Sharing the results with all relevant stakeholders and individuals to ensure that everyone is aware of the news learned during mobility in Italy. – Follow-up trainings will be organized in-person and online to share the results with museum professionals who did not participate in the mobility.

– Each mobility participant will mentor a minimum of 2 younger museum professionals, to whom they will pass on knowledge and experience gained during the mobility.

Identification of best practices: We will identify the best practices and lessons learned from mobility activities and incorporate them into the organization’s training and mentoring programs.

To share the project results within our organization, we will use various methods, such as – presenting the results at working meetings, – sending information via email, – sharing results in the corporate google drive and YouTube channel, – creating visual aids such as videos and/or infographics – using collaboration tools for sharing and discussing results with colleagues.

We will prepare articles/reports jointly with BNT for the project and its results for publication in various media outlets.

We will create presentations to be presented at conferences, symposiums, and events related to museum education and professional development.

We will develop a case study highlighting the successful implementation of training and share it with related and interested organizations.

We will use corporate and personal profiles on social media to share the results.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.