European Cemeteries Route Receives the Inspiring Practice Award

On 25 September 2026, the European Cemeteries Route received an Inspiring Practice Award from the EPA Governing Board for “Life Lessons: Cemeteries as Educational Heritage” initiative.

About the Inspiring Practice Award

From 23 to 25 September 2026, the 15th Advisory Forum on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe took place in Yerevan, Republic of Armenia. As part of the closing session, the EPA Governing Board recognised six outstanding initiatives as Inspiring Practices of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

The European Cemeteries Route, managed by the Association of Significant Cemeteries in Europe (ASCE), was awarded in the field of “Cultural and Educational Exchanges for Young Europeans” for its practice “Life Lessons: Cemeteries as Educational Heritage.” The certificate was presented by Rui Gomes, Executive Secretary of the EPA and Director of the European Institute of Cultural Routes, to Astghik Marabyan, representing Armenia, the most recent country to join the European Cemeteries Route.

Life Lessons: Cemeteries as Educational Heritage

Educational activities have been part of the European Cemeteries Route’s work for many years. Among them is the ongoing Schools on Cemeteries project, which uses cemeteries as learning environments and encourages students to discover their historical, artistic and cultural heritage.

In 2026, this approach continued through activities organised during the Week of Discovering European Cemeteries (WDEC 2026) and the ASCE Annual Conference in Turin. Under the theme “Life Lessons: Cemeteries as Educational Heritage,” the activities presented European cemeteries as spaces for lifelong learning, youth engagement and cultural exchange.

This initiative highlights how cemeteries can extend beyond their traditional role as places of remembrance, offering opportunities for learning, dialogue and intergenerational exchange, while strengthening the connection between cemetery heritage and education across Europe.

Best practices award 2022

European Cemeteries Route received the Cultural Routes Best Practices Award by the Secretariat of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA).

About the Cultural Routes Best Practices Award

The call for the “Cultural Routes Best Practices Award” was launched in 2022 by the Secretariat of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) in order to give recognition to best practices implemented by the certified Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

Award for Schools on cemeteries project

European Cemeteries Route received this exceptional award for the "Schools on cemeteries project", which has been implemented and developed for many years by European Cemetery Route members across Europe.

The ASCE president, Mrs Lidija Pliberšek, received the award certificate at the 11th Cultural Routes Annual Advisory Forum, that took place from 5th to 7th October 2022 in Chania, Greece.

The award is an important acknowledgement of the importance of the project. Thus, it will be further promoted and developed by the route management.

You can find more infromation about the project and the award itself HERE.

*On the photo from left to right: Mr. Stefano Dominioni (Executive Secretary of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe and Director of European Institute of Cultural Routes), Mrs. Lidija Pliberšek (ASCE president and director of Pogrebno podjetje Maribor) and Mr. Julien Vuilleumier (Chair, Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA)).

European Cemeteries Route successfully evaluated as a Cultural Route

To retain the label of a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe, European Cemeteries Route has been evaluated in the framework of a three-year evaluation-cycle by European Institute of Cultural Routes.

About European Cemeteries Route

European Cemeteries Route is a project established by ASCE in 2010. It refers to cemeteries as places of life, settings that, as urban spaces, are directly linked to the history and culture of the community they belong to and where we will find many of our references.

Members of the route organize guided tours, events and other activities at the cemeteries, with the aim of informing visitors and making them aware of the important cultural heritage reflected in cemeteries.

European Cemeteries Route as a Cultural Route

European Cemeteries Route has been a certified "Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” since 2010.

Every three years, the Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) meets to renew this certification to networks, such as the European Cemeteries Route.

The final step of this year's thorough, more than 6-month long evaluation process took place on 5 and 6 May 2022, in Luxembourg, where European Cemeteries Route successfully passed the evaluation and, by meeting all the required criteria, obtained the right to further use the label Cultural Route of the Council of Europe.

You can find the details about the evaluation process HERE.

Importance of the regular evaluation process

Throughout the last ten years, European Cemeteries Route has been evaluated 3 times. Always with success and observed as one of the routes that performs really well.

In many ways it may be seen as leading developer for the sector of cultural tourism.Yet again each time it went through the evaluation process, we have learned that there are possible improvements and unexploited potentials, such us:

• improvements in our work,
• improvements in the government networking,
• improvements in the research and cooperation with the academic sector,
• possibilities in cultural crossroads concept.

You can find more about the improvements and plans that European Cemeteries Route will work on in the future HERE.