Festival of the Transhumance

This is an event of regional interest linked to the historic custom of transhumance, the seasonal migration of herds and flocks from the coastal pastures to the high mountains of the Madonie.

The promotion of this tradition as a tourist attraction, enriched by numerous cultural and recreational activities, can also be an opportunity to promote local products and the natural environment of the Madonie Park. The event will be organized in collaboration with the shepherds of Geraci and various local businesses, cultural organizations, and recreational associations. The event will therefore be a celebration, but it will also commemorate, in the context of its immediate reality, a working tradition that is alive and well despite the precarious economic situation of sheep farming in the Madonie mountains.

The project has the following objectives:

• • to support the survival of one of the oldest practices of pastoral activity, transforming it into a tourist attraction to support the shepherd’s income;
  • to promote and enhance the mountainous areas of this magnificent corner of Sicily:
  • to promote the cultural creativity of the inhabitants of the Madonie mountains by investing in the development opportunities linked to the renewed and intelligent use of local natural and human resources, the latter being represented not only by monuments and the ancient and modern history of the ruling classes, but also by knowledge, crafts, secrets, curiosities, in short, by the identity of the various living human heritages;
  • encourage the spread of entrepreneurship linked to the resources of inland areas and areas decentralized with respect to metropolitan areas;
  • support the sense of identity and belonging among the population of mountain areas;
  • activate synergies between various local businesses and associations, allowing them to experience the benefits and convenience of partnership in economic initiatives;
  • experiment with the positive effects of collaboration between public institutions, businesses, and private associations in promoting the territory;
  • support local publishing as a cultural entrepreneurial tool in favor of local development policies, etc.