On 29 May the official presentation of the TOURBOT programme was made at Hellenic Cosmos. TOURBOT stands for TOUr-guide RoBOT (TOURBOT), an Interactive Museum Tele-presence Through Robotic Avatars.

This innovative robotic application was linked up to the exhibition Krossia, Chitones, Doulamades, Velades - 4000 Years of Hellenic Costume, thus providing an on-site or remote (over the Internet) guide for the public. It is the first time a robot is has been able to perform these functions within a museum: clearly this introduces new ways of accessing exhibits and our cultural heritage. The TOURBOT programme is a 2-year operation and will be completed by the end of 2001. It is supported and co-financed by the Programme Technologies of the Information Society (IST) of the European Union and by other participants. From Greece and Germany participants include: the Institution of Technology and Research (the coordinating vehicle), the Foundation of the Hellenic World, the Byzantine and Christian Museum, Athens, the THEON Robotic Systems Company, the University of Freiburg, the University of Bonn and the German Technological Museum of Bonn.

The presentation was attended by representatives of the European Committee and the Greek political community, academics, educationalists, museologists and members of other cultural organizations in Greece and abroad, as well as contributors and friends of the Foundation.