Community drop-in event in the Cambrian Mountains to discuss local interest in heritage tourism development Individuals, community groups and businesses from the Cambrian Mountains are warmly invited to attend the upcoming drop-in session organised by the CUPHAT (Coastal Uplands: Heritage and Tourism) project in the Cambrian Mountains. It will take place in Canolfan Cymunedol Mynach Community Centre, Pontarfynach, Devil’s Bridge, on Friday 11 November 2022 from 11 am – 1 pm. CUPHAT, supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the IrelandWales Cooperation programme, focuses on sustainable and regenerative heritage-based tourism in the coastal uplands of Ireland and Wales. The project seeks to showcase the shared and distinctive heritages of the Cambrian Mountains and Preseli Mountains, and the Blackstairs Mountains and Wicklow Mountains in Ireland. This event will offer local communities an opportunity to learn more about CUPHAT and share their views about heritage tourism development in their local areas. The CUPHAT project team will provide a short introduction to the project before opening the discussion to hear local views about the potential of developing businesses linked to local heritage, important local sites for tourists and the type of tourism development that would best support local communities. The project lead, Professor Rhys Jones (Aberystwyth University), describes CUPHAT as “an innovative project directly involving all members of local communities and stakeholders in collaboration so that CUPHAT can 1) develop locally appropriate tourist activities that support rural economic development, 2) help address some of the challenges facing coastal upland communities, and 3) ensure that the kind of tourism promoted by the project is not just sustainable but also actively beneficial to the region.” “We invite anybody who is interested to come along and find out more, meet with us and share their ideas. We want to learn from local communities about aspects of the cultural and natural heritage of the Cambrian Mountains that are most significant and meaningful to them and that could be better showcased to a tourist audience.” To find out more about the CUPHAT Project, all are welcome to attend the events next week. They are free to attend, and tea and coffee will be provided. ENDS Further information Coastal Uplands: Heritage and Tourism (CUPHAT) is funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Ireland Wales Co-operation Programme. The project will work with a range of community, local and national stakeholders from Wales and Ireland, with Aberystwyth University leading the project, and working in partnership with University College Dublin and the Dyfed Archaeological Trust. The project aims to showcase the natural and cultural heritage of four coastal upland areas in Ireland (Wicklow and Blackstairs Mountains) and Wales (Cambrian and Preseli Mountains) to increase sustainable forms of tourism within them, thus leading to the creation of more sustainable livelihoods, communities and environments. https://cuphat.aber.ac.uk/ | cuphat@aber.ac.uk