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World Heritage in South Eastern Europe Opening Symposium
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Osnabrück Oct. 16-18: The opening Symposium of a collaborative effort to preserve World Heritage in South Eastern Europe was held on the premises of the German Environmental Foundation’s Center for Environmental Communication from Oct. 16-18. Sponsored by the German Environmental Foundation, Fondazione per l’Arte and Istituto Superiore sui Sistemi Territoriali per l’Innovazione (SiTI) and managed by the Bellagio Forum and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC), the event featured international 30 experts on World Heritage from around Europe.  Through a series of presentations and discussions, the participants tackled the key questions of the conference which included: - How can the management needs at South-Eastern European World Heritage sites be best addressed?
- Which models for site management exist in partner institutions working on-site?
- How can the efficient site management be ensured?
- What key challenges and threats do current and potential sites face?
- Which properties face similar challenges and might benefit from a cooperative approach?
- Given current development trends what long-term risks do sites face and how might they be mitigated or avoided through appropriate planning and coordination?
Their input will form the basis for 3 subsequent on-site capacity building workshops for site managers of World Heritage natural sites and cultural landscapes as well as for managers of potential future sites. The next three workshops are scheduled as follows: - March 7-9, 2007: Managing natural values at World Heritage sites: boundaries and buffer zones - Škocjan Caves (Slovenia)
- April 2007: Managing cultural landscapes Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre (Italy)
- May 2007: Participatory management of World Heritage sites: Management and local communities Plitvice Lakes National Park (Croatia)
The goal of the program is not only to improve the management and sustainability of the World Heritage sites in South-Eastern Europe, but also begin to build a body of knowledge and experience to provide examples and management frameworks for World Heritage sites around the world. In an effort to promote communication on the issue, the program has established a website – www.preserveworldheritage.org – where all of the documentation from the Symposium and subsequent workshops will be available in English and other languages. For more information please see the overview of the program here, or go to www.preserveworldheritage.org. |
