Regional workshop: Integrating heritage conservation in professional education in the Arab region
8 – 11 June 2008

Under the patronage of H.H. Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah and Member of the Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates.

Partners

• ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property)
• The Government of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
  • Sharjah Department of Information and Culture
  • Sharjah Museums Department
  • American University of Sharjah
  • University of Sharjah
• DGCS Directorate General of Development Co-operation, Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Duration: 4 days (8 - 11 June 2008)

Place: Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

Participants
Nineteen representatives of universities and training institutions (15 participants from the UAE and 8 representatives from ICCROM, UNESCO, ALECSO and the Agha Khan Trust for Culture)

Aim
To enable educators, museum managers and university professors to develop approaches to incorporating heritage and its conservation into university curricula. The workshop also proposed to establish a network of universities, especially those who already have conservation programmes or are willing to create them.

Content
The workshop combined presentations, discussions, plenary brainstorming and group work covering the following units:

• introduction to current programmes of conservation in some universities;
• condition of heritage sites in the Arab region and existing educational programmes;
• site visits to universities with conservation programmes or conservation training;
• sharing good practice in the field as introduced in various university curricula;
• developing ideas for better integrating heritage; conservation into university curricula;
• developing individual programmes for the same purpose;
• generating an action plan for heritage higher education.

Main achievements
The institutions involved devised strategic orientations, to be followed up by ICCROM and the Government of Sharjah, to address the following needs:

• develop interdisciplinary training at regional universities and training institutions;
• establish clear definitions of required specialized areas of expertise and relevant qualifications in the heritage conservation field at various educational levels;
• ensure that professional skills and qualifications are recognized and have a value in the marketplace; and
• establish institutional networks in professional education in the Arab region.

updated on: 27 January, 2010