Supporting Industrial Heritage and Local Know-How to Benefit Regional Development: The Case of Terre et Fils

Industrial heritage expresses the close link between the cultural and natural environment, since industrial processes, whether ancient or modern, depend on natural resources, energy and transport infrastructure for the production and distribution of goods to markets. It is the result of social and political construction. Industrial heritage is a human collective with local know-how that acts to carry out a development project. Consequently, the preservation and renewal of local industrial know-how are major challenges. To address these challenges, the Terre et Filproject or company aims to support women and men who are entrepreneurs by mobilizing industrial heritage and local expertise to promote cohesion and development in a region. Terre et Fils relies on a hybrid model combining an endowment fund and an investment company. Terre et Fils Investissement extends the endowment fund's activities to companies with know-how.