Join the International Course on Managing World Heritage: People Nature Culture

Deadline: 27-Jan-23

The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) is seeking 20 participants to join the international course on Managing World Heritage: People Nature Culture (PNC23) that will be held online in English from 13 to 23 February 2023.

This flagship foundational course of the World Heritage Leadership programme is dedicated to site coordinators, members of management teams and institutions, and heritage practitioners working with World Heritage properties and other heritage places around the world.

The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), IUCN, Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea (CHA), Korea National University of Cultural Heritage (KNUCH), the Regional World Heritage Institute in Zacatecas (IRPMZ) and Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment are seeking for 20 participants.

Purpose

• PNC23 promotes a ‘heritage place approach’ to heritage management focused on understanding how to conserve and enhance the multiple heritage values of heritage places in their wider social, environmental, and economic contexts. This includes applying place-based and people-centred approaches to working with diverse communities. It brings together those involved in all facets of heritage management to share their experiences and learn from each other, advancing practice in the field.
• The course provides participants with the knowledge, skills and awareness for managing heritage places, including World Heritage properties. It also promotes long-term networks for life-long peer learning and enhanced capacity building in the heritage sector.
• In addition, all capacity-building initiatives organized by the World Heritage Leadership programme contribute to consolidating people-centred approaches and nature-culture linkages throughout World Heritage processes. This reinforces the potential of World Heritage to be a catalyst for improving institutional and legal frameworks, with positive repercussions for heritage in general.

Themes

The course will be structured around the knowledge framework for managing heritage places that will be published in the upcoming revision of the manual for managing World Heritage. This includes the following overarching themes:

• Heritage-place approaches
• Boundaries, buffer zones, and wider context of heritage places
• People-centred and rights-based approaches to heritage management
• Factors affecting heritage places and impact assessments for World Heritage
• Management systems
• Management planning and implementation
• Management effectiveness assessment
• Heritage conservation and management results

Concept of the Course

• Participants will learn how effective management can give heritage places a dynamic and mutually beneficial role in society today and long into the future, reflecting the vast array of people who care for, use and enjoy them. Heritage practitioners, policymakers within institutions, and representatives from communities and networks are among the contributors to the management, conservation and use of a heritage place. Thus, working with all these groups can be essential for gaining benefits for society and heritage itself. It is important for all relevant actors to be aware of the values that different people associate with a heritage place. They can then collaborate on appropriate approaches and methods to protect these diverse values holistically.
• In this course, natural and cultural heritage conservation are seen as interrelated and interdependent, overcoming the artificial separation between the two concepts to promote quality management at World Heritage properties and other heritage places. Engaging people is still a considerable challenge at many heritage places while linking nature and culture can have realistic barriers, including separate institutional and legal protection systems. While there is no simple recipe for responding to these challenges, there are many possible approaches to explore and consider adapting elsewhere.
• The course provides a general overview of what constitutes a heritage management system and tools to assess its effectiveness, recognizing the need to adapt to changing times and realities. By understanding how the system works, it is possible to evaluate its operation and performance, including how existing resources can be better utilized, while exploring new ways of doing things. During the course, participants will be introduced to key tools and resources for improving management, planning and decision-making processes at World Heritage properties and heritage places.
• Various frameworks, tools and methodologies are available to support heritage practitioners, decision-makers and institutions in improving the management of heritage places by promoting better and informed planning and decision-making. However, this course focuses on the learning resources produced through the World Heritage Leadership programme, including new editions of the World Heritage Management Manual, the Enhancing their Heritage Toolkit 2.0 and the Guidance and Toolkit on Conducting Impact Assessment in a World Heritage Context. Additionally, the course will draw on experiences and approaches implemented by participants at their World Heritage properties and heritage places, allowing for better understanding of heritage management in the international context and fostering peer-learning and knowledge sharing throughout the course.

Commitment

• There is no registration fee for attending this course. However, all other expenses will need to be covered by the participant. For example, access and use of a computer, internet connection, and the time committed to attending the course.
• Participants who attend at least 80 % of the course sessions will receive a certificate of attendance recognizing the hours of capacity building attended and the topics covered by the course.

Eligibility Criteria

• This course specifically targets:
  • practitioners working at a specific cultural and/or natural World Heritage property or heritage place;
  • individuals working in institutions tasked with managing World Heritage properties and/or other heritage places; and
  • individuals involved more generally in World Heritage conservation and management. For example, those working in heritage at a regional or national level, policymakers and other representatives of institutions, non-governmental organizations, charities, local associations, community groups, researchers, etc.
• The course will take place online using an online conferencing platform (Zoom or Microsoft Teams) from 13-23 February (Monday to Thursday) and will be conducted in English.

For more information, visit ICCROM.