History-en – ΔΡΟΜΟΙ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΙΑΣ – THE ROUTES OF THE OLIVE TREE

In 1998, George Karabatos, President of the Messinian Chamber of Commerce, suggested that the first travellers – lovers of olive trees, adventure and motorbikes – who wanted to get to know the other olive trees’ homelands, set off from Nestor’s Palace in Chora, where some of the oldest evidence of the presence of the olive tree has been discovered.

16,000 kilometres and 40 days on the road revealed an incredibly familiar and friendly world and an extremely interesting tradition…

In the years that followed, itineraries were organised in all the Mediterranean countries. The participants spread the idea of promoting the civilisation of the olive tree at an international level, with the aim of strengthening thematic tourism and promoting olive products for the benefit of local economies…

Everywhere, the historical and cultural links that unite the peoples of the Mediterranean are recognised and “cooperation protocols” are signed with entities from all countries.

This is the beginning of a dialogue and of the identification of the common cultural heritage of the olive tree: landscapes and olive trees, old and new oil mills, customs and traditions, culinary habits and the use of olive products.

In 2003, the OTRoutes “Routes of the Olive Tree” cultural foundation was founded in Kalamata. The initiative was supported by international bodies, and the “Routes of the Olive Tree” were unanimously recognised as a “World Cultural Route for Intercultural Dialogue and Sustainable Development” by the UNESCO Executive Board (166th Sess. EX.CO), following a proposal submitted by the Greek Ambassador , Vassilis Vassilikos, to this international body. The roads opened: the gates at the border between Morocco and Algeria, which had been closed since 1994, were unlocked for the passage of “Routes of the Olive Tree” participants, by decree issued by the King of Morocco and the President of the People’s Republic of Algeria….

Two years later, in 2005, the “Routes of the Olive Tree” were officially recognised by the Council of Europe and awarded the title of “Great European Cultural Route”.

Itineraries are organised in olive-growing countries, but also in non-olive-growing regions of Europe, with the aim of promoting the civilisation of the olive tree and the nutritional value of olive products to the public.

The Maritime Olive Routes, a symbolic special edition has also been organised, following the diffusion of the olive tree from east to west as well as the route of the merchant ships. They transported olive products olive products for centuries, bringing prosperity to portuary cities of the Mediterranean.

In 2008, the Olive Roads left the shores of the Mediterranean to join the Silk Roads. To coincide with the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, 50 motorcyclists set off from the ancient city of Messinia for Asia. The journey covered 13 countries and 17,000 km, aiming to convey a message of peace.

A number of itineraries are then organised to promote the olive tree civilisation, as well as information meetings, exhibitions, competitions, creative workshops for children and young people, etc., in Scandinavia, Baltic Sea and Balkan countries, such as Northern Macedonia, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, etc.

At the same time, scientific missions and studies are being carried out to develop local cultural itineraries and create a bibliography on olive trees with entries in all the languages of the Mediterranean.

The unfavourable economic situation and the political instability that affected many Mediterranean countries from 2010 onwards put a stop to the major international itineraries. Ever since, the emphasis has shifted to the creation of local itineraries in olive-growing countries, to the reinforcement of the OTRoutes network, along with research and actions in favour of young people and artists.

Today, the “Routes of the Olive Tree” continue their journey through space and time. The identification of points of interest and the creation of proposals for short itineraries to discover the natural and cultural landscapes of the olive tree are major initiatives of the Route. Information workshops on the civilisation of the olive tree, cultural tourism, traditional products and gastronomy are also held. Actions to welcome and integrate refugees from other olive-growing countries are also part of the activities carried out now with, of course, the cooperation of the members of the OTRoutes network, an international scientific committee, old and new friends of the Route.