On Apirila 1, José María Ballester passed away. He was a cultural heritage manager, journalist and international civil servant, and served as Director General of Culture of the Council of Europe for a quarter of a century.

Throughout his career, he was recognised by the highest institutions responsible for culture and heritage, to the extent that he was awarded the Presidency of the Jury of the Europa Nostra Awards, the highest distinction of the European Union in the field of cultural heritage.

Over the course of his career, he achieved major milestones, such as the consolidation of the Camino de Santiago as a European cultural itinerary, contributing to its social flourishing over recent decades.

He pursued the illicit trafficking of cultural property and worked tirelessly on the protection of the heritage of the Balkans in the midst of war, as well as on the conservation of cultural assets in the countries affected by the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The driving force behind the groundbreaking European Landscape Convention (Florence, 2000), he applied its guidelines in practical terms to local development projects in the Nansa and Valderredible Valleys, in Cantabria, as heritage lead at the Botín Foundation.

The local development project in the Nansa Valley was selected as a model of Good Practice by the World Forum of Local Development held in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, in 2013.

Throughout his life he received countless awards and honours, such as the Gold Medal for Merit in the Fine Arts and the Richard H. Driehaus Medal for Heritage Conservation.

He was deeply in love with the Basque Country, where he had family roots. With great generosity, he supported the most successful restoration projects, such as the Old Cathedral of Vitoria-Gasteiz or the Añana Salt Valley, places he visited frequently.

Over recent decades, he became closely involved in the restoration and enhancement project of the Galerías Punta Begoña.

He made several significant contributions to the project, such as guidelines on understanding the Galerías within the incomparable heritage represented by the Nervión Estuary and the Abra.

He also recognised and structured the project’s enormous educational potential as an essential element for its development.

He became an ambassador for the project before institutions and organisations in the heritage field and, always selflessly, he took advantage of his stays in Cantabria to visit us, support the work and share his immense experience and humanity.

Some of his reflections were captured in the interview he gave to GetxoBerri during his visit in Ekaina 2019.

A million thanks, José María; we were fortunate to have you close by.