ICOMOS Triennial General Assembly and International Scientific Symposium
Centre for Heritage Management, Ahmedabad University is an institutional member of ICOMOS India. ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) is the largest professional organization and is the advisory body to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Faculty and students of Heritage Management in Ahmedabad University are all members of ICOMOS at various levels, i.e. national members, members of the national executive committee, expert members of the international scientific committee and so on. Since the 19th General Assembly and International Scientific Symposium was being held at New Delhi on December 8 to 15th, 2017; we participated actively at various levels and events, including organizing two important events, i.e. a forum on Heritage Management Education, and a South Asian Symposium. The following is the list of activities/events/roles indicative of our active presence at this international gathering of about 1200 participants from across the world, followed by a brief note on each of them.
- Heritage Management Education Forum.
- Presentation of Masters in Heritage Management programme philosophy at the scientific symposium.
- Panellist at the Symposium on 20th Century Heritage.
- Chairing a session on Nature-Culture Journey.
- Students’ Presentation at the Scientific Symposium.
- Students participating as rapporteurs in scientific symposium and volunteering in event organization.
- Participation at the Consultation Meeting on Cultural Landscapes, organized by the UNESCO C2C on World Natural Heritage Management Training in the Asia Pacific Region.
- South Asian Symposium.
Heritage Management Education Forum
Centre for Heritage Management hosted a special side event on ‘Heritage Management Education’ in which around 30 people participated. The invited speakers in the forum included the following:
- Dr Gamini Wijesuriya, ICCROM
- Dr Roland Lin, UNESCO World Heritage Centre
- Dr Nobuko Inaba, Professor, Tsukuba University
- Dr Vassillis Ganiastas, National Technical University of Athens, Greece
- Dr Sharif Sams Imon, Institute of Tourism Studies, Macao
- Dr Jeff Cody, Getty Conservation Institute, USA
- Professor Nalini Thakur, Former head of conservation programme, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi
While each of the speakers shared their own experience or their programme, they all appreciated a new approach to the heritage management education at Ahmedabad University. Particularly they appreciated the short remarks made by the students at the end of the programme, sharing their own experience of going through the Master's programme in Heritage Management at Ahmedabad University. A few challenge areas were also identified through the discussion that took place at the forum, and all speakers agreed for synergy among the likeminded institutions across the globe.
Presentation of Masters in Heritage Management programme philosophy at the scientific symposium
Dr Neel Kamal Chapagain’s paper had been accepted to be presented at the scientific symposium during the ICOMOS GA. Accordingly, he presented an overview of the programme, discussed the key philosophy behind the programme, and argued that the programme was an innovative contribution to the idea of democratizing heritage sector while also positioning a management approach as a need of the day.
Panellist at the Symposium on 20th Century Heritage
Dr Neel Kamal Chapagain was invited as a panellist at the International Scientific Committee’s symposium on 20th-century heritage. The ISC meeting also adopted a Madrid-Delhi declaration as a guiding principle for the response to 20th-century heritage.
Chairing a session on Nature-Culture Journey
Dr Chapagain also chaired a session in the theme Nature-Culture Journey.
Students’ Presentation at the Scientific Symposium
Ms Aanchal Mehta, a first-year student presented a co-authored paper on “INTANGIBLE TRADITIONS AND WATER CONSERVATION: Concerns around Rejuvenation of Temple Tanks in Ekamra Kshetra” at the scientific symposium.
Students participating as rapporteurs in a scientific symposium
Ms Richa Pandey, a second-year student of Masters in Heritage Management at Ahmedabad University was one of the rapporteurs in the scientific symposium as well as other meetings during the ICOMOS GA. She was recognized for her contribution at the closing session of the general assembly. Other students including Aanchal Mehta, Aayushi Maheshwari, Gourav Mandloi and Shaoni Pramanick also volunteered their time for various sessions during the General Assembly.
Participation at the Consultation Meeting on Cultural Landscapes, organized by the UNESCO C2C on World Natural Heritage Management Training in the Asia Pacific Region
Dr Neel Kamal Chapagain was invited by the UNESCO Category 2 Centre on World Natural Heritage Management and Training for Asia Pacific Region to participate in a consultation meeting on cultural landscapes on December 9th. He was invited to participate in the meeting as a visiting fellow to the UNESCO C2C.
South Asian Symposium
Dr Neel Kamal Chapagain – as a member of ICOMOS Nepal, organized a special symposium for the ICOMOS National Committees from South Asia at the UNESCO Auditorium on December 11, as a side event to the ICOMOS General Assembly. The well-attended event saw presentations from Nepal, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It was also attended by non-South Asian participants, drawing from China, Phillippines, USA, Canada and others. Mr Shigeru Aayogi, the director of UNESCO New Delhi office also spoke at the symposium.
