Founded in 2018 by a group of young people—Anargyros, Eleni, Tassos and Charis—with origins and strong ties to the village, non-profit organization Vamvakou Revival implements the Vamvakou Revival initiative with the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). During the last years, the two organizations have shared the vision of the revival of Vamvakou by drawing on the region’s history, human capital and natural wealth. We aim to make Vamvakou a model village based on sustainable development, primarily targeting to bring back permanent residents. The main vehicle for this is to create job opportunities and set out modern living conditions so that, within a few years, Vamvakou will be bustling again with life, families, children, and the school bell ringing again. Tourism, culture, agri-food, entrepreneurship and innovation are the main pillars of this initiative. The Vamvakou project aims to pave the way for regeneration, aspiring to act as a model for other villages in Greece and internationally.
Vamvakou is of particular importance for both the Vamvakou Revival team and the SNF, as it is the place of origin of Stavros Niarchos, founder of the latter. It might not be the only village in Greece or abroad where regeneration projects take place; however, in this instance, a holistic approach is followed, aiming at reviving the local economy, building a new community that will be functioning across multilayered action pillars, while seeking, at the same time, to increase the involvement of the local community.