CASTLECHAIN launched in Motovun: a Croatian-Italian project connects fortified heritage, sustainable tourism and a blockchain-based „Proof of Culture“ system
In Motovun, on 25. and 26. February 2026., the first partner meeting of the CASTLECHAIN project (Fortified Original Roots for Tourism and Innovation in Sustainable Heritage) was held, a cross-border initiative linking Istrian Motovun and the Italian town of Acquaviva Picena in the Marche region. The project focuses on strengthening the role of culture and sustainable tourism in economic development, social inclusion and social innovation, with particular emphasis on how cultural heritage is presented and protected in the digital environment. In practice, CASTLECHAIN aims to show that innovation and technology can be used as a tool to preserve authenticity, rather than as a shortcut toward fast, superficial and commercially driven interpretations of local history.
Given that Motovun was those days the central meeting place for partners, the local community gains the role of host, but also co-creator of the content that will be developed through the project. This is especially important for destinations that are recognizable, yet at the same time sensitive to tourism pressures, because every expansion of the offer also brings the question of balance: how many visitors, what kind of content, and who has the right to the „official“ story about the place. For everyone planning to come to Motovun because of the project program, workshops or field activities, it is already realistic to expect interest in
[accommodation near the event location in Motovun], especially in periods when several events overlap at the same time in small communities.
Project value and partners: focus on fortified heritage and cross-border effects
CASTLECHAIN is financed with European Union funds through the Interreg Italy – Croatia 2021. – 2027. program. The project lasts 18 months, from 1. February 2026. to 31. July 2027., and the total value amounts to 312.453,00 €, with 80% co-financed from the European Regional Development Fund. The project lead partner is the Municipality of Motovun-Montona, and the partners are the Comune di Acquaviva Picena, the organization G.A.L.E.E. Sibilline from Italy, and the Tourist Board of the Municipality of Motovun. Such a composition, which connects local self-government, an entity specialized in cultural tourism and a destination organization, is designed so that the project has both institutional weight and operational feasibility.
In the project approach, territorial rootedness is especially emphasized: partners do not rely only on „external“ narratives about attractions, but strive from within, in cooperation with local stakeholders, to build content and routes that will not be a copy of universal tourist templates. The role of the two municipalities, Motovun and Acquaviva Picena, is described as strategic: they coordinate cross-border activities, gather local participants and participate in the joint development of tools and strategies for the valorization of heritage. In such a model, the result is not only digital content or a marketing campaign, but also a set of agreed standards, procedures and rules – who, how and on the basis of which sources speaks about heritage.
- Duration: 1. February 2026. – 31. July 2027. (18 months)
- Total value: 312.453,00 €
- Co-financing: 80% from the European Regional Development Fund
- Lead partner: Municipality of Motovun-Montona
- Partners: Comune di Acquaviva Picena, G.A.L.E.E. Sibilline, Tourist Board of the Municipality of Motovun
Motovun and Acquaviva Picena: „fortified roots“ as a common denominator
Both Motovun and Acquaviva Picena are, in public perception, strongly connected with fortified architecture and medieval layers of history, which is also visible in the very name of the project: „Fortified Original Roots“. In Motovun, according to tourism descriptions and official destination information, the medieval urban ensemble is emphasized, the hilltop position and the system of walls that dominates the landscape of the Mirna River valley. In Acquaviva Picena, according to available destination descriptions, the Rocca stands out as a key motif – a fortress that defines the identity of the place – but also a whole series of historical buildings and local traditions that go beyond a purely „postcard“ image.
For a project that wants to be more than classic tourism promotion, this is an important starting position. Fortified cores and historical monuments are not just scenery, but content that must be interpreted responsibly, with awareness that heritage stories are often simplified, adjusted to trends, or adopted without verification. In places like Motovun this is particularly sensitive: the town is recognizable enough to attract visitors, but small enough that any change in the manner of presentation – digitally or on site – quickly becomes part of residents’ everyday life. That is precisely why it is no coincidence that, alongside the development of tourism content, community inclusion is emphasized in parallel, because long-term sustainable tourism in small historic cores depends on whether the local population feels that the project works „with them“, and not „about them“.
In that sense, the interest of visitors and project participants in Motovun likely will not be limited to one-day visits. If activities take place across multiple terms and in different formats, it is realistic to expect a need for
[accommodation offers in Motovun] even in pre-season periods, which can contribute to distributing tourist traffic outside classic seasonal peaks, but on the condition that the content remains aligned with the capacities of the place.
„Proof of Culture“: blockchain as a shield against digital forgeries of identity
The central innovation element of CASTLECHAIN is the introduction of a system called „Proof of Culture“, a framework based on blockchain technology and specifically designed for the needs of preserving authentic cultural and historical heritage. The project partners start from the assessment that the digital environment increasingly creates pressure on cultural content: stories are shortened, simplified or reshaped to be „attractive“, sometimes without clear indication of sources, authors or context. In such a space, especially in the context of mass tourism and uncontrolled production of digital content with the help of artificial intelligence tools, the risk grows that local heritage will begin to be presented through inaccurate or misleading narratives.
Proof of Culture foresees that digital cultural content – such as podcasts, historical narratives and digitized medieval documents – is authenticated, tracked long-term and permanently linked to the original source. In practice, such a system should enable that, for each digital artifact, it can be traced who created it, when, on the basis of which references and in what context it was created. In doing so, blockchain is described in the project as a tool of trust and protection of cultural values, and not as a speculative mechanism: the goal is not to create a financial product, but to create a stable framework that makes manipulation, untraceable copying and the spread of content that „pretends“ to be authentic more difficult.
Such an approach gains importance at a moment when the boundary between „digital interpretation“ and „digital replacement of reality“ becomes ever thinner. If cultural heritage turns into generic content that can be edited without responsibility, then tourism that relies on it also becomes short-lived: the visitor gets an attraction, but loses context, and the community loses control over its own identity. CASTLECHAIN therefore approaches the problem as a question of managing cultural integrity, and not as a technical question of „yet another platform“.
From digital narratives to thematic routes: how the project connects online and on-site experience
During the first partner meeting in Motovun, the upcoming activities and cooperation of all partners in creating narratives and thematic routes were discussed in detail. The project is set up so that it does not remain in the digital sphere, but connects online content with the on-site experience. Thematic routes are, in that sense, a logical step: they offer the visitor structured movement through space, but also a controlled interpretation – a story that is verified, supported by sources and aligned with local identity.
It is also important that a joint approach is emphasized: instead of each destination building its story in isolation, the partners strive to develop a framework in which the fortified heritage of the two Adriatic shores can be viewed as connected, but not equated. In other words, the goal is not to make „the same route in two places“, but to show how similar motifs – ramparts, fortresses, town cores, documents, oral tradition – can be interpreted in a way that preserves differences and emphasizes authenticity. In that process, digital content can serve as a bridge: a podcast or a digitized document can introduce the visitor to the story before arrival, and after the visit remain as a permanent record of the experience.
For Motovun, this also opens space for content that is not necessarily tied to the peak of the season, but to cultural formats that can be planned throughout the year. If the project includes workshops, guided interpretations or public presentations, this can increase the need for
[accommodation for visitors to Motovun] also in periods when the destination is quieter, which is often the goal of sustainable tourism policies: a more stable rhythm of visits instead of sudden peak loads.
Local communities at the center: stakeholder inclusion and social effects
At the meeting, partners highlighted the importance of actively including local communities in all phases of implementation. In practice, this means that content should not be created exclusively in offices or through external productions, but with the participation of local historians, cultural institutions, associations, tourist guides, creatives and other stakeholders. Such a model is more demanding, because it requires agreement and common standards, but in the long run it is more resilient: a community that participates in shaping the narrative has a greater interest in protecting it, upgrading it and passing it on.
In social terms, the project is also positioned as a tool of social inclusion. When cultural heritage is treated only as a tourism resource, those who live in that heritage are often neglected. But when heritage is viewed as a common good, space opens up for including groups that otherwise remain on the margins of tourism development – through education, local cultural programs, new interpretive formats or opportunities for work in cultural and creative industries. In small communities, this can be an important element in retaining people and strengthening local competencies, especially in the area of digital skills and cultural production.
At the same time, the emphasis on the „Proof of Culture“ system also introduces the theme of responsibility in digital communication. If content must be authenticated and linked to sources, then the way of working changes as well: from quick posts toward a careful editorial process. That can be a gain for the tourism sector too, because the quality of interpretation is raised, and quality interpretation is often what distinguishes a short-lived attraction from a destination that visitors return to.
Wider context: European heritage digitalization policies and the question of trust in content
CASTLECHAIN appears at a time when, in Europe, there is increasingly strong discussion about the digitization of cultural heritage, standards of online access and long-term digital storage. Digitization opens great possibilities: documents, photographs, maps, oral history and other materials become more accessible and more resilient to physical damage. But at the same time it brings a problem of trust: who guarantees that the digital version is authentic, that it has not been altered and that it is not being shared outside of context.
It is precisely at that intersection that CASTLECHAIN wants to build its contribution. Instead of digital technology serving only for a „more attractive presentation“, it is used as an infrastructure of verifiability. If digital narratives and documents are permanently tied to the source and the author, then future interpretations also have a clearer foundation. In a time when content is quickly copied, translated and reshaped, such a framework can be crucial for preserving local identities, especially in environments whose heritage can easily be turned into a universal tourism stereotype.
What follows after the initial meeting: from agreed steps to measurable results
After the initial meeting in Motovun, the project enters an implementation phase in which it will be tested how much the ambitious idea can be turned into operational tools and content. According to the announced approach of the partners, the following months should bring the elaboration of common standards for creating narratives, the selection and preparation of material that will be digitized or produced, and the design of routes and formats that will be applicable in both communities. The key point will be balance: how visible the technological layer should be to the user, and how much it should remain „in the background“ as a guarantee of verifiability.
If the project achieves the goals it sets, Motovun and Acquaviva Picena could gain a model that can be applied beyond their local framework: a model in which innovation serves the preservation of authenticity, digital technologies protect local identity, and communities remain legitimate guardians of their own heritage. For two small, but strongly recognizable communities, the stake is not only tourist traffic, but also the question of who will in the future have the right to the „accurate“ story about the place – and whether that story will remain rooted in real sources, and not in the loudest digital interpretations.
Sources:- Interreg EU – overview of the Interreg Italy–Croatia program and thematic areas of cooperation (link)- Interreg events (call materials) – presentation of the call objectives and the 80% co-financing rate (link)- EEA Climate-ADAPT – description of the focus of the Interreg Italy–Croatia 2021–2027 program and co-financing rates (link)- Istra.hr (official tourism portal) – description of Motovun and the cultural-historical core (link)- TZ Motovun – cultural sights, walls and the list of protected monuments (link)- Italia.it (ENIT) – basic description of Acquaviva Picena and key sights (link)- European Commission (Digital Strategy) – digital cultural heritage policies and the common European data space (link)- npj Heritage Science (Nature) – overview of the application of blockchain in digital cultural heritage resources (link)
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