Project Title: European Cloud for Heritage OpEn Science hUManities
Acronym: ECHOES
Coordinator: Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS)
Type of funding: European
Funding source: HORIZON-CL2-2023-HERITAGE-ECCCH-01
Dates: June 2024 - May 2029
Project website
Description: ECHOES aims to create the European Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage (ECCCH) as a shared platform for heritage professionals and researchers. This platform will provide access to data, innovative scientific and training resources, and advanced digital tools that are co-developed by the heritage community according to their specific needs. ECHOES seeks to unite the fragmented communities within the Cultural Heritage (CH) field, which includes various actors from different sectors and disciplines, into a cohesive community centered around the Digital Commons. Moving beyond a narrow focus on assets and mere digitization, ECHOES aspires to initiate a transformative paradigm shift within the CH field. The APAC Labs team contributes to this important effort along with expert researchers from STARC and across the Cyprus Institute.
Adopting a holistic approach, ECHOES will digitize the existing knowledge of Heritage objects, both tangible and intangible. It aims to create a digital environment that enables the collaborative analysis of CH assets, facts, and phenomena. In this environment, both human experts and Artificial Intelligence can develop their interpretations, thereby enriching the collective knowledge of CH and their contexts. The proposed digital environment will empower users to interact with, manipulate, and enhance Digital Twins, fostering the creation of new, collaboratively developed scientific knowledge.
The ECCCH built by ECHOES is anchored in the principles of Open Access and Open Science. It promotes inclusivity and democratizes access to knowledge and digital assets, which are considered public goods for the benefit of all. This digital environment will facilitate the creation of a new generation of heritage objects, known as the Digital Commons, which are semantically rich and collectively produced – embodying “the heritage of tomorrow.”By the end of the project, ECHOES will deliver a single platform that integrates the results of EU and national projects on CH. The sustainability of the ECCCH will be ensured through the establishment of an inclusive legal entity before the project's conclusion.
The Cyprus Institute, as one of the project partners, leads several task forces and a work package throughout the duration of ECHOES. The Cyprus Institute demonstrates multidisciplinary collaboration, with scholars from various fields contributing different aspects of this European effort.