AWISH Kefalonia Conference 2005

We’re working to keep the conference intimate in size to encourage lots of interaction among the international group of participants. Conference participation is by invitation, representing the AWISH International Board, AWISH affiliates, IASBO, Schumaker 197 Ecology of Commerce/Natural Step Participants, AWISH–Hellas, Kefalonia University program faculty and students, DRATTE members (Greek sustainable tourism organization, our conference co-host), and Greek professionals and government officials involved with sustainable development.

We have several conference objectives:

1. To establish new relationships among our International AWISH community
   
2. To celebrate the emergence of AWISH–Hellas and its activities in Greece
   
3. To provide a forum for discussing current themes in sustainable development
   
4. To discuss sustainability issues facing Greece
   
5. To experience sustainable Greek communities
   
6. To apply international knowledge, concepts and ideas to the Kefalonia/Greece context
   
7. To infuse ideas and approaches for AWISH–Hellas’ undertaking in Kefalonia – planning the sustainable redevelopment of “Blue Village”
   

Conference Format

The conference will emphasize informal interactions among participants, featured guest speakers, facilitators guiding small talking circles in sustainability topics, walking tour in Blue Village, and venues that include some of the Island’s most exquisite outdoor sites where we will host talks and conversations, artistic performances, and the customary long nights over great food and drink, conversation and, of course, music, in outdoor “taverna” settings around the island.

The conference will combine informal discussion with presentations to provide a context for our conference themes, which include: approaches to sustainable village planning (Blue Village), problems facing sustainable tourism, technology, green building, energy systems, preservation of traditional community values, and other themes. Ideas generated at the conference will help Kefalonia in their pursuit of sustainable development, and will help AWISHhellas to devise a methodology to guide redevelopment planning for Blue Village – our case community. A Conference Proceedings will be published and distributed to participants. See the preliminary agenda for more details.

Conference Fee. A fee of $250 includes the conference event, evening meals and drink, and performances. Participants will be provided information for making their own hotel, travel, and car rental reservations. Travel information will be provided to participants upon registration.

Kefalonia, Greece

Kefalonia, home of Odysseus, is our host community for the conference. It is the largest of the Ionian Islands, with a total area of 688 square kilometers. Kefalonia lies in the Ionian Sea, on the west coast of Greece. It is accessible via a 2–hour ferry boat ride from Patras, Greece and other connections from Corfu, Greece, and Italian ports. It lies to the south of the Islands of Lefkada and Ithaca and to the north of the Island of Zante, opposite the mouth of the Gulf of Corinth. The island is lush and mountainous, with peaks extending from the most northerly cape to the extreme south of the Island. Mt. Ainos is the highest mountain, at 1,626 meters.

Kefalonia is a beautiful island of contrasts: it has quiet, windless beaches and verdant slopes, it has steep cliffs plunging into the clear turquoise sea and mountainsides clad in the deep shadow of fir forests. The climate is mild and belongs to the Mediterranean maritime category, with a hot, dry summer and a warm, wet winter. It has been said that Kefalonia is the geographic center of Gaea.

September is a glorious month, very warm, dry, and with the peak tourist season of August over, you will be able to experience the best of Kefalonia without the crowds. Conference participants will have plenty of time each day to explore magnificent beaches and villages on their own. We’ll provide you with an interpretive map of the island, pointing out places to see and experiences not to be missed. Whether you are looking for some of the most spectacular beaches in the Mediterranean, remote mountain villages, mountain hikes, or idyllic seaside towns, you should plan extra days on either side of the conference dates to fully get to know Kefalonia as well as the adjoining islands. Because Kefalonia is a large island, we recommend that participants rent cars. This will allow you to self explore the remotest parts of the island.

The conference center will be in the Kefalos Theatre in the main Town of Argostoli, with a population of about 8,000. There are about 35,000 residents on the island. Most of the island’s towns and villages were destroyed in the devastating earthquake of 1953. Evidence of the fallen historic towns is everywhere. Despite the loss of much of its glorious historic Venetian architecture, the redeveloped city of Argostoli is one of Greece’s loveliest waterfront towns. You can walk to everything in town – cafes, markets, shops, museums – where our hotel rooms and conference facility are located. You can even walk to one of the islands most beautiful beaches.

Blue Village, which lies 5 km from Argostoli, was completely destroyed in the earthquake, and unlike many other Kefalonia villages, it was never rebuilt. One of Kefalonia’s primary community development objectives is to redevelop (traditionally and sustainably) its fallen villages, which will be a major undertaking of AWISH–Hellas’ programs.

AWISH–Hellas, an affiliate of AWISH International, is a nonprofit NGO organized to promote understanding and education in community sustainable development in Greece. AWISH–Hellas offers university educational programs and applied research, conferences and workshops, and technical assistance to promote sustainable community wellbeing. Its programs foster collaborations with communities, businesses, universities and governments to advance knowledge about the relationship between culture, economic development, environmental justice, and the creative and performing arts and a community’s health and well being.

Sponsored by Huxley College of the Environment, Western Washington University, in cooperation with AHA International (an Academic Program of the University of Oregon), and administered by AWISH–Hellas, the KEFALONIA PROGRAM is an integrated, applied studies curriculum in Sustainable Community Development. Students work with faculty and the local community to formulate sustainable redevelopment planning alternatives for the reconstruction of “Blue Village.” The program begins its full-time semester session in fall 2005 and spring 2006.