In the framework of their cooperation with 3 European Universities (Polytechnic Institute of Leiria, Portugal, University of Avignon (France), Universities of Peloponnese and Thessaly (Greece) and the research they are jointly conducting on ”Olive Heritage for Sustainable Development : Raising Community Awareness of Living Heritage OLIVE4ALL project”.

The Routes of the Olive Tree participated in this extremely interesting international conference which took place in Portugal from 4 to 7 October 2023.
The workshops were hosted in different cities Tomar, Azinhaga do Ribatejo, Oliveira do Hospital, Lamego, Mirandela & Vila Nova de Foz Côa, by the local Universities and were accompanied by visits to Olive and Olive Oil Museums, olive oil facilities and meetings with local olive growers.

In particular, the hosts of the Conference were the Polytechnic Institute of Leiria, the Polytechnic Institute of Tomar, the José Saramago Foundation in Azinhaga, the Olive Oil Museum at Bobadela, the Museum of Olive Tree and Olive Oil of Mirandela, Archaeological Museum of Côa with the support of the Universities of Coimbra, Porto, Braganza and the Foundation Côa Parque.

Representatives of important Portuguese institutions such as CEPAAL (Centro de Estudos e Promoção do Azeite do Alentejo), APPITAD (Associação de produtores de proteção integrada da região de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro), Tourism Regional Entity of Centro de Portugal, Tourism Regional Entity of Alentejo and Ribatejo, o Mayor of Tomar etc. participated in the proceedings.

Some of the many and very interesting topics presented were :

• A comprehensive review on olive oil tourism experience literature, Bebiana Monteiro and Josefina Salvado
• Olivotourism as a tourist-cultural product and its influence on the dynamics of territories, Pedro Martins and Eunice Lopes
• Mills and olive oil production for the social development and environmental sustainability of rural areas, Sónia Peres and Eunice Lopes
• The 100 Olive Trees of Saramago: Heritage education, olive heritage and creative tourism, Fernanda Oliveira, Sofia Eurico, Francisco Dias and Daniela Amorim
• Inhabitant and tourism dynamics for olive preservation through Unesco inscription: the case of The Olive Grove Landscapes of Andalusia (Spain), Isabelle Brianso
• Experiencing the olive tree through documentary to gain a better understanding of its uses, Natacha Cyrulnik
• Sustainable cultural management of the olive heritage to promote culture and strengthen the local economy: The Cultural Routes of the Council of Euro,pe Marinella Katsilieri
• Who are the tourists of the olive tree? What are the characteristics of olive tourists visiting Messinia? Francisco Dias, Maria Kouri, Marinella Katsilieri
•  “The definition of family”: Beliefs and Attitudes of olive tourists towards the olive heritage in Messinia, Maria Kouri and Marios Kondakis
• Olive tourism and local sustainable development: A delphi panel analysis, Fernanda Oliveira and Francisco Dias
• Outlining the profile of Portuguese olive tourists: Experiences, motivations, and preferences, Francisco Dias, Fernanda Oliveira, Nuno Rodrigues and Victor Figueira