On 22 October, the certification ceremony for Romea Strata, Pyrenean Freedom Routes and Saint Francis’ Ways took place during the official opening session of the 14th Advisory Forum in Cappadocia, Türkiye.
The Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) awarded these 3 certifications at its 2025 meeting as part of the 2024-2025 Certification Cycle.
Romea Strata
The Romea Strata reconnects a pan-European web of historic roads that for centuries guided merchants, pilgrims, envoys and travellers from the Baltic region to Rome. Crossing countries from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania through Poland, Czechia and Austria to Italy, the Romea Strata revives a long tradition of movement that helped knit together Europe’s religious, commercial and cultural life.
The Pyrenean Freedom Routes
The Pyrenean Freedom Routes bring into the public eye a dramatic and previously under-remembered chapter of European history: the thousands of people who, during the Second World War, risked perilous mountain crossings to escape occupied France and reach safety in Spain and beyond. Between them, nearly 55,000 men and women of many nationalities used these clandestine paths, a testament both to individual courage and to the quiet networks of solidarity that sustained escape and resistance across borders.
Saint Francis’ Ways
Saint Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) stands among Europe’s most enduring spiritual figures: a radical exemplar of poverty, care for creation and peacemaking whose influence spread far beyond Italy. The Saint Francis’ Ways gather and present the manifold traces of Franciscan life, from monastic houses and sacred sites to the walking paths that echo centuries of devotional travel, and make them accessible to contemporary audiences of all backgrounds.
At the occasion of certification ceremony, new certified Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe had the chance to present their networks to the EPA member states, to other Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, as well to representatives of International Organizations, academics from the Cultural Routes University Networks and tourism professionals.
Picture: (from left to right) Raffaella ROSSI, Director of Saint Francis' Ways; Viola GAUDIANO, Project Developer of Romea Strata; Yoan RUMEAU, President of Pyrenean Freedom Routes; and Rui GOMES, Executive Secretary of the Enlarged Partial Agreement.
