With €21 000 in support from the €6.9 million Hungarian NGO Fund of the EEA and Norway Grants, the Cultural Association of Onga in north-east Hungary has carried out a one-year project to collect and publish educational material about the village and its history, drawing on local sources and contributions from residents.
A photo book documenting the 20th century history of the village has been published, in addition to an interactive DVD and a website with articles, photos, stories and other material contributed by local residents. In addition, a village museum with a permanent exhibition as well as an open-air exhibition has been established. In January 2010, an educational path around the village with 11 information points was inaugurated.
All of the village's 5000 inhabitants have in some way or other been involved in the project, ranging from 30 volunteers working at the village museum to elderly residents contributing by sharing stories and pictures. The main target groups of the project are children, teenagers and young adults.
Due to heavy rains and flood problems in the nearby villages, the new village museum has also proven to be a welcome place of refuge, in which evacuated people from the nearby villages have sought shelter.
Photo: Guri M. Smenes, Royal Norwegian Embassy, Budapest.