Revitalizing the watercraft heritage along the Tigris and the Euphrates

Communities from the Tigris and Euphrates watershed hold a rich vernacular material culture and important traditional ecological knowledge. The project ensured the continuity of traditional crafts of boatbuilding, such as the construction of Tarada and Meshouf canoes of the marshlands, or the Ashari Balam (urban canal boat of Basra). The Iraqi Heritage Boat Clubs Network funded new branches in Babylon, Chibayish, Basra, and Baghdad. In addition over 100 young people around the country participated in workshops and studies on the maritime and vernacular heritage of Iraq’s waterways which created economically sustainable activities.