On 31 August, ICCROM and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) hosted a workshop entitled ‘Integrating traditional knowledge systems and concern for cultural and natural heritage into risk management strategies’. This full day session took place during the week-long International Disaster Reduction Conference (IDRC) in Davos, Switzerland, where over 1,000 participants took part from approximately 59 countries. The purpose of the session was to highlight the importance of cultural heritage and traditional knowledge to risk reduction by bringing it to the attention of experts spanning a vast range of fields related to disaster management and relief.

In general, risk management strategies do not incorporate concern for cultural and natural heritage. While acknowledging the primary importance that should be placed on protection of human lives, the positive roles of both heritage and traditional knowledge as factors for sustainable development, including in reducing risks from disasters, are not adequately recognized within the global disaster reduction policies and objectives.

The workshop presented this issue and defined possible actions to facilitate the integration of heritage concerns and traditional knowledge systems within wider global, regional and national disaster reduction strategies.

One significant result was the inclusion of heritage in the IDRC Davos 2006 Declaration, which states that “Concern for heritage, both tangible and intangible, should be incorporated into disaster risk reduction strategies and plans, which are strengthened through attention to cultural attributes and traditional knowledge”.

Participants

• Narumon Arunotai, Social Research Institute of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand
• Giovanni Boccardi, World Heritage Centre, Paris, France
• Dinu Bumbaru, ICOMOS and Héritage Montréal, Quebec, Canada
• Rohit Jigyasu, Private consultant, Delhi, India
• Herman Kiriama, Fort Jesus Museum, Mombasa, Kenya
• Kanefusa Masuda, Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan
• Cristina Menegazzi, ICOM, Paris, France, and the ICBS
• Randolph Langenbach, Private consultant, Oakland, California, USA
• Herb Stovel, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada

ICCROM

• Joseph King, Unit Director, Sites Unit
• Gamini Wijesuriya, Project Manager, Sites Unit
• Jennifer Copithorne, Consultant

Results from the IDRC, including the IDRC Davos 2006 Declaration will be available online at www.davos2006.ch.

This workshop was made possible through the support of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre

Member states represented: Canada, India, Japan, Kenya, Thailand, United States

updated on: 12 September, 2006