International Heritage News
01
ICCROM Team Participates in the 21st International Course on Stone Conservation in Mexico
The ICCROM team participated in the 21st International Course on Stone Conservation (SC23) in Campeche State, Mexico.
The course reflects advances in practice, science, and technology, including practical methods for integrating stone conservation in sites, buildings, and structures.
SC23 was held online from September 11 to November 9, 2023, followed by field practice in Campeche from November 12 to December 3, 2023.
This year’s course brought together stone conservation professionals from Canada, India, Iraq, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Scotland, Spain, Syria, Turkey, and the United States, all dedicated to protecting stone-built heritage.
Source: iccrom.org
02
Nine New Members Elected to the World Heritage Committee
The 24th General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention was held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France, from November 22 to 23, 2023, with participation from 195 States Parties.
At this session, nine members were elected to the World Heritage Committee:
Ukraine, South Korea, Vietnam, Kenya, Senegal, Lebanon, Jamaica, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka.
Source: whc.unesco.org
03
“Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0” Officially Released
UNESCO and the advisory bodies of the World Heritage Committee—ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property), ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites), and IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)—have released a newly revised toolkit for evaluating the effectiveness of World Heritage management systems.
“Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0” provides a set of methods for assessing management effectiveness of World Heritage sites, applicable to cultural, natural, and mixed heritage.
Source: iccrom.org
04
UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes Awarded to Australia’s Gunditjmara Community
The 2023 UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes will be awarded to the Gunditjmara community in Australia in recognition of their long-term efforts in protecting and managing the Budj Bim Cultural Landscape. The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2019. The winner will receive a prize of 30,000 US dollars.
Source: whc.unesco.org
05
Sea-Level Rise and Storm Surges: Climate Change and the Future of Coastal Heritage
Coastal zones are among the most dynamic and unstable environments on Earth, and they include some valuable heritage sites.
As the pace of climate change accelerates, challenges from sea-level rise to coastal erosion have become the greatest and most complex threats facing coastal heritage.
Over millions of years, coastlines have shaped shorelines and communities around the world. By sharing experience and knowledge, people and places facing similar challenges can improve their capacity to adapt, learn, and build resilience.
From New York City in the United States to Kilwa Kisiwani in Tanzania, this event will explore tools and principles that can guide the future of coastal heritage worldwide, including coastal defense construction, citizen science initiatives, and digital storytelling.
This event is hosted by Dr. Alexander J. Kent, project lead of the Coastal Connections project at Historic England.
Source: wmf.org
Domestic Heritage News
01
The Second World Cultural and Natural Heritage Academic Forum Opens at Peking University
In accordance with UNESCO initiatives and in response to the “Asian Cultural Heritage Protection Action” and the Global Civilization Initiative, efforts are being made to strengthen the scientific protection and rational use of cultural and natural heritage, promote interdisciplinary integration and talent cultivation in heritage protection and utilization, and advance the implementation of sustainable development concepts in cultural heritage protection across Asia.
The UNESCO Asia-Pacific World Heritage Training and Research Centre (Beijing), the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University, the China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation, and the Office of International Relations at Peking University jointly held the Second World Cultural and Natural Heritage Academic Forum from November 17 to 18, 2023. The theme was: “Contemporary Relationships Between Humans and Nature: Coexistence, Mutual Learning, and Sustainability.”
The opening ceremony was held at the lecture hall of the Second Gymnasium of Peking University. Liu Yuzhu, Chairman of the China Foundation for Cultural Heritage Conservation, Song Xinchao, Chairman of the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics, and Jiang Guohua, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Peking University Committee, attended and delivered speeches. More than 50 well-known experts, scholars engaged in heritage research and practice at home and abroad, and representatives of managers from World Cultural and Natural Heritage sites across the country attended the opening ceremony. The ceremony was hosted by Chen Jianli, Party Secretary of the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University.
During the two-day forum, participating scholars from UNESCO, Pakistan, Belgium, Zambia, Colombia, the United Kingdom, as well as universities including Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, Southeast University, Tongji University, Sun Yat-sen University, and Beijing Forestry University, along with UNESCO Category II centers and chairs, engaged in in-depth discussions on six themes: “World Heritage Development Trends,” “Protection and Management of Archaeological Site Heritage,” “Human–Nature Relationships,” “Protection and Utilization of Village and Cultural Landscape Heritage,” “Protection and Utilization of Historic Built Environments,” and “Natural Heritage Protection and Community Development.” The forum also included a youth forum and a heritage site managers’ forum, inviting young scholars and doctoral students, as well as managers from ten World Heritage sites such as the Palace Museum, Jingmai Mountain Ancient Tea Forest, and Jiuzhaigou, to present and discuss the latest research results and share experience in heritage protection and management.
Source: WHITRAP-Beijing
02
2023 Baiheliang International Academic Symposium Held
On November 22, the 2023 Baiheliang International Academic Symposium was held in Fuling District, Chongqing. Experts on hydrological heritage from seven countries, including China, Egypt, France, the Netherlands, Australia, Mexico, and India, gathered to conduct academic discussions around the theme “Hydrological Heritage in the Context of Global Climate Change,” and engaged in dialogue and exchange on the feasibility and strategies of a joint World Heritage nomination for “Baiheliang–Nilometer.”
Sun Hua, Director of the Academic Committee of WHITRAP-Beijing and professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University, Zhang Jianwei, Executive Deputy Director of WHITRAP-Beijing and Vice Dean of the same school, Dr. Li Guanghan, Assistant Director of WHITRAP-Beijing, and Dr. Zhao Yajing from Peking University attended the symposium.
During the session on “Feasibility and Strategies for the Joint World Heritage Nomination of Baiheliang–Nilometer,” Bai Jiujiang, Director of the Chongqing Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, and the Peking University project team delivered keynote presentations titled “Challenges, Value, and Strategies of the Joint World Heritage Nomination of ‘Yangtze River Baiheliang–Nile River Roda Island Hydrological Heritage’” and “Characteristics and Value of Chinese and Egyptian Hydrological Heritage.” Participating experts held discussions on the heritage value, nomination pathways, and strategies of Baiheliang inscriptions in China and Nilometer inscriptions in Egypt in the context of global climate change.
Source: Chongqing Cultural Heritage
03
First Museum Studies Conference Opens in Guangzhou
On November 24, the first Museum Studies Conference of China opened in Guangzhou. It was guided by the National Cultural Heritage Administration and jointly organized by the Chinese Museums Association, China Cultural Relics News, and the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism.
This conference is the first nationwide museum studies conference organized by the Chinese Museums Association since its establishment more than 40 years ago. It is an important initiative and practical implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture within China’s museum sector. With the theme “High-Quality Development of Museums in the New Era,” the conference focuses on key, difficult, and central issues in current museum development, discussing important theoretical and practical aspects of high-quality development, and aiming to provide effective and high-quality channels for academic cooperation, sharing, and advancement within the museum community.
Zhang Jianwei, Executive Deputy Director of WHITRAP-Beijing and Vice Dean of the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University, delivered a presentation at the sub-forum on thematic exhibitions of cultural relics, titled “Commemoration and Humanistic Spatial Context: Exploring Concepts for the Display and Utilization of Urban Revolutionary Cultural Relics.”
Source: Chinese Museums Association
04
International Symposium on “Localized Transmission of Living Heritage”
The International Symposium on “Localized Transmission of Living Heritage” focuses on living heritage, aiming to implement UNESCO’s principles on living heritage and community development, deepen cooperation between Fudan University and Guizhou Province in cultural heritage protection and utilization, strengthen dialogue and exchange between Chinese and international scholars in heritage research and practice, and serve national strategies for rural revitalization and integrated urban–rural development.
Main topics include the relationship between heritage protection/utilization and sustainable community development, the role of local residents in heritage protection and transmission and their development needs, and the concept of eco-museums and their localization in China.
Dr. Li Guanghan, Assistant Director of WHITRAP-Beijing, and Wang Siyu, Director of the Public Archaeology and Art Center at Peking University and Assistant Professor at the School of Archaeology and Museology, attended the symposium.
Date: November 24–27, 2023
Organizer: Fudan University, Guizhou Provincial Cultural Heritage Administration, Qian County People’s Government
Source: Runwu Heritage
05
Yangtze River Culture Nanjing Forum — Sub-forum on River Heritage
Organized by Southeast University and the UNESCO International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property–Asian Academy for Heritage Management (AAHM), and taking the First Yangtze River Culture Nanjing Forum as an opportunity, this sub-forum presented awards to the 2022 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation winners, including the Xiaoxihu Historic District project in Nanjing and the Guizhou Xili Lane project in Shanghai.
In collaboration with local government departments, intergovernmental organizations, universities, and research institutions, the forum invited Chinese and international experts in historic cities, heritage conservation, and the revitalization and utilization of intangible cultural heritage. It focused on challenges and responses in the protection of historical and cultural heritage in river-basin cities, and jointly explored international approaches to sustainable protection and development of historic cities along major river basins.
Date: November 25, 2023
Venue: Multi-function Hall 201, Yangtze River International Conference Center
Source: Asian Academy for Heritage Management
Compiled by: Lü Jiaxin
Edited by: Lü Jiaxin, Park Lina
Reviewed by: Li Guanghan, Wang Siyu
Final Review: Shen Ruiwen, Zhang Jianwei
