Like other parts of the Third Sector, ICOMOS-UK understands the need for government cut-backs but is concerned about the possibly severe implications of the budget in terms of the capacity of the charitable sector in general, and the heritage sector in particular  to deliver appropriate services in the light of the re-trenchment of the public sector in many areas.

The ability of the heritage sector to deliver important cultural services (alongside equally important eco-system services) is now widely recognised. These resources relate to the social  aspects of the ‘big society’ that the Government has rightly focused on – the  sense of place, sense of well-being and the idea of  local distinctiveness, all of which have been acknowledged in the new PPS5 and in the work many Agencies have been undertaking in response to the ratification of the European Landscape Convention. The ability of the heritage sector to contribute substantially to GDP is now also widely recognised, through the way it underpins much of the tourism sector, as has been confirmed by the arrangements for the 2012 Olympics.

Yet the cultural heritage sector relies to a much greater extent on the charitable sector than either the Arts sector or the Environment sector. And the anticipated cut-back of DCMS resources linked to a potential decrease in revenue from gift aid, as a result of the £1,000 increase in the personal income tax allowance, and to an increase in VAT, will all impact negatively on the charitable sector.

There is an urgent need for the heritage sector to create a platform from which to engage with the government in order to underline the strong relationship between the charitable sector, government agencies and local authorities and to make the case for appropriate resources to sustain these relationships, in straightened times.

The closing date for applications is: 11 June 2010

The Tentative List was last revised in 1999. This is the chance for all aspiring sites to be considered for possible nomination over the next five to ten years. Please spread the news of this process to appropriate organisations who might have an interest in suggesting a site.

All applications will be assessed by a panel of independent experts appointed by Government.  The new Tentative List will be submitted to Ministers for approval before going forward to UNESCO in 2011.

Full details of how to apply including the necessary forms  and an application pack can be found on the DCMS web-site at:  http://www.culture.gov.uk/consultations/6740.aspx

ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) has decided that the theme for International World Heritage Day 2010 is the Heritage of Agriculture. Whilst Liverpool’s World Heritage Site has no significant agricultural heritage, its role as the supreme example of an international seaport has resulted in an outstanding heritage in the storage and transportation of agricultural produce. Liverpool City Council has therefore organised five free guided tours of different areas of the World Heritage Site on 17^th and 18^th April 2010, looking at the agricultural exchanges, headquarters of insurance companies, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, the Triangular Trade across the Atlantic and the merchants’ activities around Duke Street. The tours will be led by qualified tour guides.

For further information and for details on how to book, view the Liverpool International World Heritage Day 2010 leaflet and/or visit www.liverpoolworldheritage.com

Cultural World Heritage Sites are incredibly diverse, ranging from individual monuments and sites, such as Stonehenge and Avebury, to historic areas and cities such as Bath, Liverpool and Edinburgh. The defining characteristic that links all cultural World Heritage Sites is that the asset or property must be recognised as being of ‘outstanding universal value’.

In many countries, World Heritage Sites are provided with statutory protection under national planning and/or development legislation. This is not the case in the United Kingdom, although the outstanding international importance of the site does constitute a key material consideration to be taken into account by local planning authorities in determining planning and listed building applications. Local authorities are also required to formulate specific planning policies for protecting World Heritage Sites.

This course introduces participants to the processes of WHS nomination and inscription, and explores the impact of WHS designation on the management of a site. It will discuss some of the practical issues that flow from WHS inscription and the need to manage and protect a site’s ‘outstanding universal value’. It is aimed at professionals who would like to know more about the position of World Heritage Sites in the planning process (in England and the rest of the UK), and to those who are keen to improve the quality, relevance and effectiveness of World Heritage Site management plans and planning.

Audience
The course is open to all, but will be of particular interest to:
• World Heritage Site co-ordinators and managers or those providing advice to other property owners/managers in the vicinity of a WHS;
• Planners who have to consider the potential impact of development proposals on a WHS or within the setting or buffer zone of a WHS;
• Heritage practitioners who wish to understand the importance and impact of World Heritage Sites or who might become involved in preparing a WHS management plan or a conservation management plan for a heritage asset in close proximity to one;
• Practitioners who have an interest in working on projects for UNESCO internationally.

More information

If you have any questions about this course, please email professional.arch@conted.ox.ac.uk

The Sutton Subrang Dance Ensemble, Photo: Rolf Killius

The Museum of Croydon and the London Sitar Ensemble hosted a major exhibition in the Croydon NOW gallery of the Museum of Croydon, and other public display areas at Croydon Clocktower, from April to July 2009. The exhibition showcased the outputs of the ‘String and Dance Festival’ Project which was run by London Sitar Ensemble. The core exhibition comprised of oral history interviews (video), musical instruments and associated objects from the Community Groups involved and other donors (potentially the Horniman Museum), photographs and videos showing musical performances and dances from the Indian Sub-Continent as performed in the UK, costumes and associated musical instruments of all eight classical Indian dances and three folk dance genres from western India. Within the musical instruments display the emphasis was on string instruments like the sitar, sarangi, violin, veena, sarod, santoor and the supporting instruments like drums and cymbals.

Two photo exhibitions complemented the exhibition and were displayed in other public areas of the Clocktower: one showing Croydon-based dancers and musicians; and the other about a music instruments collection project in India. The exhibition was embedded in a string of events like workshops, rehearsals, oral tradition interviews and concerts. Taking and using a wealth of digital video, still photography and audio recordings constituted a major part of the activities and display.

Indian music and dance is one of the finest traditions in the world. Tracing its roots back to times immemorial, these art forms have an interesting pattern of evolutionary changes. Many changes, transformation and evolution have taken place, enriched by the contribution of the musicians and dancers, great and small, famous and unknown. The India – Britain story is a 400 year long tale of travel, migration and cultural exchange. This journey has made a significant influence on the cultural scene of British Arts. The ‘Indian Strings and Dances’ project, undertaken by London Sitar Ensemble and Croydon Museum and supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, aims to explore the evolution and contribution made by the musicians and dancers in Britain.

The exhibition was curated by Lata Desai and Rolf Killius in close collaboration with Rob Shakespeare, Acting Museum Service Manager.

CALL FOR PAPERS

The 11th Cambridge Heritage conference seeks to examine the Olympics as a global and a local phenomenon affecting heritage by addressing two themes:  (1) the Olympics as heritage and (2) the impact of the Olympics on cultural heritage. Every four years the Olympics goes beyond just being a sporting event, offering a local and a global stage where countries can promote and showcase themselves to the world.  Cultural heritage is intimately entangled in the games, both in terms of the Olympics as historic, but also in how the event impacts the cultural heritage of the host country.

The 11th Cambridge Heritage Seminar is using the Olympic games as a forum for thinking about how one event can impact and transform local and global cultural heritage.  It will be divided into two sessions.  The first session will explore how the games are themselves heritage, and the second will examine the ‘heritage-impact’ of the games in the nations that host them.  The conference particularly welcomes theoretical contributions and case studies from Athens, Beijing and London.

Some indicative themes and questions of the type we intend to address are:

• The symbolism and performance behind the Olympic games.  
• How does one sporting event manifest as both global and local heritage? 
• How has the Olympics become a commodified event?  How does Olympic tourism impact cultural heritage?
• How do the games affect and transform the existing built environment of a city?
• How does new built architecture become cultural heritage in its own right?

Please send 500-word paper abstract or poster proposals to Shadia Taha at st446@cam.ac.uk. Proposals should be sent as PDF or Word documents and should include full contact information and a brief CV. Deadline for proposals is February 28th 2010.   General Information and Registration will be available soon at: http://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/heritage-seminar

A 1-day event aimed at people involved in the planning system within World Heritage Sites, including Planners, Conservation Officers, WHS Co-ordinators and Councillors.

The event, which is being held at two alternative venues, has been organised jointly by the Local Authority World Heritage Forum (LAWHF), English Heritage and ICOMOS-UK.

The Telford event will be chaired by Gillian Clarke, Secretary of LAWHF and the Newcastle upon Tyne event by Susan Denyer, Secretary of ICOMOS-UK.

For more information please e-mail jbl.telshrops@blueyonder.co.uk or telephone Jonathan Lloyd on 01952 587615

Download the programme and booking form

 Is there such a thing as a global conservation philosophy for cultural heritage? Should there be? Or should cultural heritage conservation reflect cultural diversity? The Conference will consider these thoughts through exploring conjunctions and differences between conservation philosophies and principles in UK, India and China.   

Agra Fort, India, photo: M & G Therin-Weise

These aspirations were translated into an Australian national framework by the Burra Charter, the Australian National Charter, 1979. The idea of universality was strengthened by the 1972 World Heritage Convention with its concept of outstanding universal value for properties that might be seen part of the ‘world heritage of mankind as a whole’, which thus translated universal ideas to places perceived to be of universal value.   

In recent years the China Principles, 2002, and the INTACH Charter for the Conservation of Unprotected Architectural Heritage and Sites in India, 2004, have developed conservation guidance related to specific cultural traditions. Do these still somehow reflect the idea of an over-arching conservation philosophy that can be seen to be global? Or are they stand alone documents whose similarities merely reflect the interchange of ideas between east and west?  We considered these thoughts through exploring conjunctions and differences between conservation philosophies and principles in UK, India and China.  

The Conference included three keynote speeches from internationally prominent practitioners in China, India and UK. They explored conjunctions and differences between conservation philosophies and principles in China, India and UK and discussed international conservation instruments and guidelines including the China Principles, INTACH Charter and English Heritage Conservation Principles and a possible UK Charter.  

Keynote speakers:

• Professor Guo Zhan (China), Director, World Heritage Expert Committee of China; Vice President, ICOMOS International: Universality and Individuality in the Concept of Conservation.  

• Professor A. G. Krishna Menon (India), Convenor, Delhi Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH): The evolving conservation movement in India: its relevance in a globalising world.  

• Paul Drury (UK), The Paul Drury Partnership: Culture, heritage values and places – relating the abstract to the concrete.  

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The other distinguished speakers at the conference included:

Xue-cai Yu,  Department of tourism, Southeast University, Nanjing, CHINA

Namiko Yamauchi, Japan Cultural Heritage Consultancy, Tokyo, JAPAN

Souad Sassi, University of Mentouri, Constantine, ALGERIA

Biumol Tom, Assistant Professor, College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, INDIA

Vikas Dilawari, Head of Conservation, Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of Architecture and Environment Studies, Mumbai, INDIA

Jeff West, ICOMOS-UK Executive Committee, UK

Keith Emerick, Inspector of Ancient Monuments, English Heritage, UK

Louise Cooke, Independent Consultant, UK

Sarah Wolferstan, Consultant, Institute of Archaeology, University College London, UK

Susan Denyer, Secretary, ICOMOS-UK; World Heritage Advisor, ICOMOS, London, UK

Their presentations addressed the following themes:  

• Are coincidences in conservation ideas between east and west the result of direct contact and exchange of ideas between conservation professionals in the 19th and 20th centuries?  

• Are coincidences of outcome influenced more by changing overarching philosophies – the westernisation of the east (colonialism) and the easternisation of the west?  

• Is there an over-arching conservation philosophy which brings east and west together at a global level and within which regional and national principles, policies and practice can be developed, or are there fundamental dichotomies and irreconcilable differences?  

• At a practical level, is there potential for international agreement on methods of, and standards for, conservation interventions at cultural heritage sites?    

York Minster, UK

The conference also included a tour of York Minster led by Andrew Arrol, York Minster’s Surveyor of the Fabric,

An optional site visit to Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal World Heritage Site took place on Saturday 5th June. 

For more information please contact:

Camilla Massara, Events Co-ordinator, ICOMOS-UK: camillamassara@icomos-uk.org  

The aim of the conference is to consider the threat to the UK’s unique heritage from fire and other such incidents and is a must attend for anyone who is involved with Fire Protection or the restoration and preservation of heritage buildings.

The conference will involve key players from across the cultural and heritage sectors as well as representatives from the world of fire engineering, architecture, tourism and planning.

For more information and to book please contact Mandy Eeles on 07919 175310 or Richard Daly on 01606 868290.   

Cheshire Fire & Rescue Service
The Institution of Fire Engineers

Painshill Park, Surrey

Painshill Park is bringing together key players in the debate to a major conference, using Painshill’s award winning restoration as a model for past and present approaches, and discussing new ways of looking at landscapes in the future.

The two-day conference will be chaired by Dr Patrick Eyres. Speakers will include:

Mavis Batey (Garden History Society)
Mike Calnan (National Trust)
Mark Laird (Harvard University and Painshill Park Consultant)
John Phibbs (Dubois)
Michael Symes (Garden Historian, Author and Lecturer)
Janie Burford (Council Member, Painshill Park Trust)
Kate Felus (Historic Landscapes)
Brent Elliott (Royal Horticultural Society)

Tours of Painshill will be included on the first day.

Cost to delegates:  £100 for the two days including refreshments and lunches (there will be a limited number of places at a reduced fee for students)

To obtain a booking form, or for further information, please contact:

Rachael James (PA and Park Administrator)
Painshill Park, Portsmouth Road, Cobham, Surrey, KT11 1JE
e-mail: rachaeljames@painshill.co.uk
Tel: 01932 868113

This is a fundraising event and proceeds will go towards the on-going restoration of Painshill Park.
Reg. Charity No. 284944