Matthias Ripp, Germany | June 26, 2017 10 am
https://de.linkedin.com/in/matthias-ripp-5437a645
European Year of Cultural Heritage
Night view on Vienna’s Cultural (Heritage) Centre (© Matthias Ripp, Regensburg, Germany)
43 years ago the Council of Europe (http://www.coe.int) dedicated the year 1975 the „European Architectural Heritage Year“. A wide range of activities has been well recieved by the european citizens and lead not only to the development of important policy papers like the European Charter of the Architectural Heritage (http://www.icomos.org/en/charters-and-texts/179-articles-en-francais/ressources/charters-and-standards/170-european-charter-of-the-architectural-heritage) but in general to an increased awareness for heritage issues. Subsequently Europe‘s heritage sector has seen a stimulated development that gained speed with the implementation of new institutes, laws, capacity building activities etc..
The title of the 2018 year „European Year of Cultural Heritage“ seems to be wider in scope and will probably focus beside the built heritage also on intangible heritage and other categories.
The objectives of the European Comission for the 2018 year are:
„The European Year of Cultural Heritage aims to:
- encourage people to explore Europe’s rich and diverse cultural heritage
- celebrate, understand and protect its unique value
- reflect on the place that cultural heritage occupies in all our lives
Visitors looking at the Bund in Shanghai (© Matthias Ripp, Regensburg, Germany)
European cultural heritage allows us to understand the past and to look to our future. By highlighting cultural heritage in 2018, we will emphasise:
- how it builds stronger societies
- how it creates jobs and prosperity
- its importance for our relations with the rest of the world
- what can be done to protect it“ (https://ec.europa.eu/culture/european-year-cultural-heritage-2018_en)
Society and technology has changed a lot since 1975, so accordingly we will see new technologies play a substantial role. This can be either in the „exploration“ of cultural heritage or in the protection of cultural heritage. With the use of new (social) media also communication of cultural heritage has changed in many ways. Whereas traditional heritage communication has followed a linear sender-reciever concept, today heritage communication is complex, multidimensional and better understood through systems thinking. To better understand how cultural heritage is influencing our society, modern life and how it even can enhance our quality of life new technologies will surely be very helpful.
Use of new technology for heritage interpretation at the World Heritage Visitor Centre in Regensburg (© Matthias Ripp, Regensburg, Germany)
From 8th till 10th of November in Vienna the
22nd International Conference on Cultural Heritage and New Technologies – CHNT will take place. Get involved and learn more about it on: https://www.vienna.convention.at/de/congress/22012