Skuli Björn Gunnarsson from Gunnar Gunnarsson Institute hosted partners from Ulster University (Northern Ireland), Robert Gordon University (Scotland) and The Gaeltacht Authority (Ireland), alongside some SMEs from Ireland and Northern Ireland.

On Tuesday 14th June, the morning kicked off with a workshop where partners talked about the different projects clustered in CADI-SHAC: Digi2Market, StoryTagging, CINE... After them, both locals and the foreign SMEs talked about their different companies and how the tourism industry and natural heritage is working on their areas.

The guests were both from SMEs, local municipalities and a regional development agency. The engaging and inspiring presentations were followed by a delicious lunch. 

In the afternoon, partners were taken to an organic farm where the owner told them why and how he moved from a dairy farm to its current state where barley plays a key role.

Later, the group visited the Wilderness Center where the founder introduced the place to the group and they could step into the past of the region.

A dinner with a welcoming community followed by a storytelling event around the fire put an end to a memorable night.

On Wednesday the 15th, the group visited Vatnajökull National Park Visitor Center and Skriduklaustur for a workshop on gamification and game-based approach to heritage. They learnt about the writer Gunnar Gunnarsson and played with digital heritage in the form of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. 

The Vök Baths is a new tourist attraction in the region and part of the rising SPA culture in Iceland. It was introduced to the group in the workshop the day before and a relaxing time in its geothermal pools was the perfect goodbye to East Iceland before heading to Reykjavik and back home for those who couldn't stay for the PHIVE Final Conference.