28 September. On 26 September, ICCROM opened the second International Course on First Aid to Cultural Heritage in Times of Conflict. The course provides a platform for exchange to professionals of various backgrounds and experience that are committed to improving the protection of cultural heritage when it is under threat. Throughout the five weeks of the course, the 21 participants will develop skills and strategies needed to ensure an effective initial response and prevention of further damage to cultural heritage in the event of conflict through hands-on activities, group work, site visits and formal lectures. The participants will discuss the implications of accidental or intentional destruction of movable and immovable heritage and explore how its protection and recovery can play an important role in overcoming the sense of loss and displacement. 

This year, the group is composed of professionals from the following fields: movable heritage (archives, museums), immovable heritage (sites, monuments), humanitarian aid, national army, and international development and cooperation.

On the evening of 26 September, an official inaugural reception took place at ICCROM with a welcome address by the Director-General. Attending were representatives from the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities of Italy (MiBAC), the Commander of the Carabinieri Cultural Heritage Protection Unit, as well as ambassadors, cultural attachés and representatives from the following countries: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, Eritrea, Iraq, Liberia, Nigeria, Sri Lanka and the United States.

Regular updates on the course will be given in the coming weeks.

Please see 'related section' (menu on the right) for more information on the course, including participants, teaching team, programme and bibliography.

Participants

• Athman Hussein ABDALLA
• Azza AL TOUBI
• Dhurgham ALI
• Rahimullah AMANI
• Ouafa BELGACEM
• Laura BERDEJO
• Samedi CHHUON
• Anna DAL MASO
• Ismaïla DIATTA
• Samanthi DISSANAYAKE MUDIYANSELAGE
• Medina HADŽIHASANOVIĆ-KATANA
• Christoph HUETTERER
• Marcela JARAMILLO
• Azmat Ali KHAN
• Linus Kasai KINGI
• Albert MARKEH
• Sada MIRE
• AbdelHamid SAYED
• Thomas TESFAGHIORGHIS
• Salvatore VENTURELLA
• Hülya YÜCEER

The course was organized thanks to the financial support of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities of Italy (MiBAC) and in collaboration with UNESCO, the Blue Shield Network, the Prince Claus Fund, the Carabinieri Cultural Heritage Protection Unit and the Italian Red Cross Pionieri.

Member States represented: Afghanistan, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Colombia, Egypt, Italy, Kenya, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Senegal, Spain, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Turkey.

updated on: 30 September, 2011