On September 5 and 6, a working group meeting for the Estonia-Latvia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme project “Garden Pearls for Everyone” (Garden Pearls II), Project No. EE-LV00038, took place in Räpina, Põlva County, Estonia, with representatives from Latvia and Estonia in attendance.

As part of the meeting, participants visited the Palusalu Garden and Mikko Farm to observe implemented accessibility solutions firsthand and to set future goals for further enhancing the accessibility of these sites.

Tõiv Jõul from the University of Tartu presented the progress made on the self-assessment toolkit. Meanwhile, Gita Memmena and Raitis Sijāts from the “Garden Pearls” association introduced plans for accessibility improvements to the gardenpearls.eu website. The Vidzeme Tourism Association presented the schedules for planned exhibitions, and Sille Talvet-Unt, together with pilot investment partners, provided an overview of the sites. Project timelines were reviewed, and discussions were held regarding partner suggestions and various administrative matters.

Thank you to all participants, and a heartfelt thank you to the hostesses of the Palusalu and Mikko gardens for their hospitality!

More information on the project website can be found here: gardenpearls.eu

You can also follow project updates and the Garden Pearls network on Facebook and Instagram:

Facebook: Garden Pearls

Instagram: darzaperles

Project No. EE-LV00038 “Garden Pearls for Everyone” (Garden Pearls II) is co-financed by the Estonia-Latvia Cross-Border Cooperation Programme 2021–2027.

Photo: Gita Memmēna