Models of Successful
Heritage-Based Economies
Looking at past success of rapid economic growth around a heritage site, such as Byblos or Baalbek, show the potential many dormant sites in Lebanon and Syria have to revitalize the surrounding communities. Youth now teaches the next generation of builders, merchants, restaurateurs how to capitalize on these sites.
International Music Festivals
Both sites have cultivated popular and culturally relevant festivals
Concerts with backdrops of historical sites thousands of years old are never a bad idea. Both festivals have been successful in drawing visitors, employing hundreds of people every year, and stimulating local and regional economies.
Preservation and Development
Archaeological Restoration and Conservation, and Promoting Surrounding Growth
Ras el Ain Park in Baalbek (left) and the restoration of the Temple of Jupiter are both evidence of opportunities for skilled labor in and around these sites. The real-estate boom in and around Jbeil also shows that these sites can attract investment to a region.
Nightlife and Commerce
Byblos has proven to be a popular site for commercial shops, bars and clubs, and restaurants.
Partying in an ancient city is an easy pitch to make. Byblos has been embraced by locals around Lebanon as a necessary destination every summer, drawing visitors to its clubs and patrons to its shops.
