Welcome to the ERIH newsletter in December. In this edition, we look back at the ERIH Annual Conference in Łódź, Poland, and the election of the new ERIH Board, along with an address by the new ERIH President, Dr Walter Hauser (DE). In addition, we are excited to announce that Creative Europe will continue to support ERIH in 2025-28, and introduce key projects for the upcoming 4-year period. We invite you to watch the recently released composite video ‘WORK it OUT 2024’ to review this year's dance event, and congratulate the three winners of the Social Media Voting Contest. The newsletter concludes with updates on the ERIH website and a brief note on next year's ERIH Conference and the dates of the ERIH Young Professional Roundtables.

The topics at a glance:

• ERIH Board: Farewells and new faces
• ERIH Board: Welcome address by the new ERIH President Dr Walter Hauser (DE)
• ERIH Conference: Presentations, workshops and site visits
• ERIH Funding: Approval of a further Creative Europe funding budget for 2025-28
• ERIH Event: WORK it OUT #7 – Composite Video and Winners of the Voting Contest
• ERIH Website: New content
• ERIH Calendar: Save the date

Two newly elected board members will take their places with immediate effect: Łucja ZAWADZKA (PL), Deputy Director of the Zabrze Coal Mining Museum, and Isabella ALFKEN (DE) from the Route of Industrial Heritage team of the Ruhr Regional Association. A warm welcome to both!

And there was another important change: ERIH Founding President Prof. Dr Meinrad Maria GREWENIG (DE) did not stand for re-election, yet remains a full member of the Board. His successor is Dr Walter HAUSER (DE), Director of the LVR Industrial Museum, who will continue his long-standing Board membership as ERIH President.

The other ERIH Board members had their positions confirmed: Vice President Dr Adam HAJDUGA (PL), Treasurer Susanne RÖSKES (DE), furthermore Peter BACKES (DE), Hildebrand DE BOER (NL), Katharina HORNSCHEIDT (DE), Willi KULKE (DE), Prof. Massimo PREITE (IT), Javier PUERTAS JUEZ (ES).

In his subsequent introduction to the conference theme ‘Ecological sustainability - how to come from buzzword to action’, Peter BACKES (DE), a long-standing member of the ERIH Board, argued in favour of making sustainable action the norm for all aspects of life, particularly for the sake of future generations. He cited the 17 sustainable development goals agreed on by global leaders in Paris in 2015 as a guideline and identified six of them as being of direct relevance to the industrial heritage sector. The topic of the ERIH conference, Backes said, was an important first step.

‘Certifications, labels and common standards in the Portuguese industrial tourism network’ was the subject of Teresa FERREIRA (PT) from the Portuguese Tourism Organisation. She began by explaining the structure of the 220-member network, with industrial museums accounting for 37 percent and active companies for 55 percent, while the remaining 8 percent share both characteristics. In line with the national approach to sustainable tourism development, the network's primary objective is to increase the attractiveness of sparsely populated regions by providing unique, year-round locally based tourism products as part of a nationwide ecosystem. To highlight the work of the network, she presented a number of best practice cases in terms of accessibility and sustainability: from a factory that transforms cork into decorative objects to the National Railway Museum, one of the flagships of Portuguese industrial heritage.

In their presentation ‘Sustainability comes when museum teams move from talk to action’, Dr Susanne RICHTER and Jürgen KABUS (DE) from the ERIH Anchor Point Chemnitz Museum of Industry focused on the practical implementation of sustainability concepts. They referred to the four sites of the Cooperation Association of Saxon Industrial Museums, consisting of Industry Museum Chemnitz (next year's host of the ERIH conference as European Capital of Culture 2025), Pfau Brothers Textile Factory, Ehrenfriedersdorf Tin Mine and Knappenrode Energy Factory. All four have practised sustainability - partly initiated by the museum teams - such as by repeatedly reusing exhibition displays, through waste collection campaigns, the conversion of lockers into interactive media units or the travelling exhibition ‘Power2Change. The energy transformation’. To mark the year of the European Capital of Culture, the Chemnitz Industrial Museum will be organising an exhibition illustrating five examples of structural transformation - in close cooperation with the five partner cities and industrial centres of Gabrovo (BG), Manchester (GB), Mulhouse (FR), Łódź (PL) and Tampere (FI).

Approximately 100 million euros, according to Łucja ZAWADZKA (PL), Deputy Director of the Coal Mining Museum and ERIH Anchor Point in Zabrze, Poland, and newly elected member of the ERIH Board, have been spent on the site's refurbishment and revitalisation over the last 15 years. 45 per cent of this figure came from EU funding, whose Green Deal also commits museums to sustainability measures. Some of these, however, are in conflict with the requirements of heritage conservation, especially in the case of industrial heritage. In her presentation ‘Ecological dimension and sustainability vs. Industrial heritage - the case of Coal Mining Museum in Zabrze’, Łucja Zawadzka cited a steam engine from 1915 as one of many examples. To be able to show it in operation, the museum installed a highly efficient, low-emission steam boiler fuelled by natural gas, which also generates heat for central heating and domestic hot water in historic buildings in the area. However, this is always at the expense of authenticity and also incurs high costs. Her conclusion: sustainability management in the industrial heritage sector is always a delicate compromise between faithful preservation and modern requirements.

A sustainable masterplan for the reintroduction of water as a power source was at the centre of the presentation ‚Waterpower: Harnessing sustainable heritage and innovation at Cromford Mills, Derbyshire‘ by Eilis SCOTT (UK), CEO of the Arkwright Society, which operates the ERIH World Heritage Site Cromford Mills, among others. The project was prompted by the rapid rise in energy costs and the decision to find a low carbon solution in harmony with the history of the site. As part of a project costing around £500,000, implemented thanks to an extensive crowdfunding campaign with multiple donations from businesses and private supporters, a modern waterwheel was designed, assembled by local craftsmen and installed in a historic basin. New materials and installations are clearly labelled to distinguish them from the historic structure. In addition, display boards document in detail all the facets and historical references of the project. Another outcome is a strategic partnership with the University of Derby to integrate sustainable practices into curricula and adult education. Meanwhile, the site is moving ahead with the next project: the conversion of a building next to the waterwheel for public events and as an additional source of income, sustainably renovated and equipped with eco-friendly heat pumps.

Frauke STENGEL (DE), Sustainability Officer at the ERIH Anchor Point Zeppelin Museum in Friedrichshafen, gave an informative overview of the museum programme launched in 2021 to reduce its ecological footprint in her presentation ‘Into the deep - Facts and numbers on a carbon neutral exhibition’. She illustrated the practical implementation in detail citing the example of the exhibition ‘Into the deep. Mine of the future’ (2023). The measures ranged from fruit crates and pallets as exhibition walls and seating to biodegradable catalogues with life hacks for improved sustainability as part of everyday life and a 10 percent climate ticket discount for visitors who travelled to the museum by public transport, bike or on foot. In the end, detailed documentation revealed an eco-balance of 204,000 tonnes of CO2. This, according to the speaker, corresponds to a third of the Zeppelin Museum's regular exhibitions. The findings are now to be incorporated into a practical guide for other museums and organisations. The challenges of the project - including frequent changes of staff, outdated building structure and limited financial resources - will also be taken into account.

Four on-site workshops delved deeper into the topic of ‘sustainability in practice’. In the workshop ‘Between “this is fine” and “we are doomed”’, organised by the EC1 education team, participants worked playfully on ideas and solutions using LEGO bricks. The second workshop focussed on the UN Sustainable Development Goals and how they can and should be implemented at the locations. The third workshop, ‘Not lightweight - staying relevant, acting sustainably’, discussed sustainable exhibition organisation and design. The fourth workshop was organised by the ERIH Young Professionals and participants of the Industrial Heritage Summer School as a hybrid format. Together, they developed sustainability toolkits for sites.

The conference included an extensive excursion programme. It kicked off with a get-together on the first day at the ERIH Anchor Point Central Museum of Textiles, the former White Factory of Ludwik Geyer. The entrepreneur from Brandenburg is considered a pioneer of the emerging textile industry in Łódź. He built the first smokestack in Łódź and his looms were powered by the city's first steam engine. Today, the site tells the story of textile history with historically furnished workshops and workers' flats as well as an exciting mix of both analogue and virtual exhibits.

On the evening of 24 October, the programme covered a visit to the ERIH Anchor Point Manufaktura Complex. The former Izrael Poznański factory is now one of Poland's largest shopping and leisure centres. The restoration of the complex (former weaving mill, power plant, processing facilities and fire station) was the first example of the large-scale revitalisation of industrial areas in Poland. The conference participants also took part in an exciting guided tour of the factory museum.

There were two excursions to choose from on 25 October. The first visited the Księży Młyn (Priest Mill) Quarter, which was built in the 19th century by Karol Scheibler, the richest entrepreneur in Łódź at the time. The neighbourhood was a autonomous district within the city, modelled on English industrial estates. It had factory buildings, including a huge castle-like cotton mill, warehouses, workers‘ houses, a school, a fire station, two hospitals, a gasworks, a factory club, shops, owners’ houses and a railway siding. Much of this can still be seen today.

The second excursion again headed to the ERIH Anchor Point EC1 Łódź - City of Culture. In addition to the science and technology centre and the conference facilities, it also houses the National Centre for Film Culture, which will open in 2023. The centre and the ‘Kino Polonia’ exhibition provide an overview of 120 years of Polish cinema over an area of 1,500 square metres. The exhibition features footage in almost 50 different screenings, 100 costumes from the most famous domestic productions and hundreds of other exhibits, props, posters and equipment, as well as a 500 square metre section with large-format prints.

Finally, all excursion participants met at Monopolis, a former vodka factory that is now home to restaurants, shops, offices and event rooms as well as a small infopoint on the history of the factory and was recognised as best project in the ‘mixed use’ category in an international competition in 2020.

Impressions of the conference are also available in the conference video, which was produced on behalf of the Łódź Tourism Board. We will upload it on the ERIH YouTube channel as soon as possible.
ERIH conference 2024 (presentations, photo gallery)
ERIH YouTube channel

Once again, ERIH successfully applied for a Creative Europe network grant with its project ‘SHINE4Future - Shaping Europe's Industrial Heritage for a sustainable future’. The project was selected as one of 39 network projects out of 98 submissions. Seven work packages have been set up to collaboratively identify solutions for current requirements and a changing environment, including the implications of the pandemic, climate change, digitalisation, younger and changing target audiences and user groups, a generational turnover of stakeholders and a skilled labour shortage. The details of the project were presented at the General Assembly in Łódź. ERIH members will receive emails inviting them to participate in the different project modules. The 4-year project will run from 2025 to 2028, with ERIH receiving almost 1.2 million euros in EU funding.

Live or on social media, participants experienced it first hand: the 7th WORK it OUT dance event was met again with great enthusiasm by the dance teams and the audience. A new feature this year was the countdown video, displaying the last 30 minutes before the dance actually kicked off. For many of those involved – especially for the younger ones – WORK it OUT was and still is a completely new way of exploring industrial heritage. Watch the composite video for a three-minute summary of the event highlights.

As in previous years, we invited the WORK it OUT community to tag their favourite dance teams on the ERIH accounts on Instagram and Facebook with a ‘like’. 24 videos were submitted for the contest. This newsletter pays tribute again to the three winning sites:

• 3rd place: PJSC "Arcelor Mittal Kryvyi Rih" Open Air Museum of Mining Equipment (UA)
• 2nd place: São Pedro da Cova Mining Museum (PT)
• 1st place: Ficinus Workers’ Settlement in Ruda Śląska (PL)

Congratulations to the three champions of the competition! And a big hug to all voters!

What's next? WORK it OUT will take a creative break next year: after seven successful years, we decided to thoroughly evaluate experiences and feedback and work on the further development of the pan-European dance event. Thus, while there will be no WORK it OUT in 2025, this is not a farewell, but a fresh start. 2026 will see the return of a joint European event. We cannot wait to let it happen!
WORK it OUT 2024
Social Wall WORK it OUT 2024

Thanks to 70 new sites described, the ERIH website now features more than 2,400 industrial monuments and museums of technology in all European countries. The chapter ‘The Dark Sides of the Industrial Revolution’ has also been expanded. In addition to the existing essay on ‘Slavery and Colonialism’, the new contributions deal with the topics of ‘Worker's Misery and the Labour Movement’ and 'Destruction of the Environment'. An essay on the topic of Forced Labour is in preparation.
Worker's Misery and the Labour Movement
Destruction of the Environment