europa nostra newsletter

EXCHANGING IDEAS AND EXPERIENCES

Europa Nostra Activities

Annual Congress

15 - 20 May Saint Julian’s, Malta

In May Europa Nostra members gathered in Malta to participate in Europa Nostra’s Annual Congress. They were joined by approximately 150 guests from Malta and abroad. The programme, jointly prepared by Din L-Art Helwa and Europa Nostra’s International Secretariat, included meetings of the Working Groups, the Management Committee, the Council, the General Assembly, a Public Forum and cultural visits.

On Tuesday 16 May, Council members were invited to a reception by Europa Nostra’s President HRH the Prince Consort of Denmark on board the Danish royal yacht, the Dannebrogh. Wednesday 17 May started with a visit for the Council members to the former capital of Malta : Mdina. In the afternoon, Council members participated in the meetings of the three Europa Nostra Working Groups on “European Policy”, “Central and Eastern Europe ” and “Landscapes”. The evening programme was composed of the multi-media presentation, “The Story of a Knight” by Dr Philip Farrugia Randon at St James Cavalier Centre for Creativity and the Arts. This was followed by a visit of Palazzo Parisio where the Hon Dr Michael Frendo, Minister for Foreign Affairs hosted a reception.

On Thursday, the plenary meeting of the Council was followed by the General Assembly. During the Council Meeting, cultural visits for the other members of Europa Nostra included the Sacra Infermeria, Għar Dalam and Marsaxlokk. In the evening, a guided tour of the President's Palace was followed by a reception hosted by H.E. Dr Edward Fenech-Adami, President of Malta at his residence, San Anton Palace.

On Friday, a Public Forum was held to study the benefits and the disadvantages of cultural tourism for monuments, sites and local communities. Following the Forum, participants sailed to Valletta’s Grand Harbou, where HRH the Prince Consort of Denmark officially presented the Medal of the European Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards Scheme to the representatives of the Valletta Waterfront. A dinner at the historic Sacra Infermeria, hosted by The Hon Dr Francis Zammit Dimech, Minister of Tourism and Culture closed the day in splendour.

Saturday had been reserved for the discovery of a selection of Malta’s heritage highlights. These included St John's Co-Cathedral, Msida Bastion Historic Garden of Rest (a Europa Nostra Medal winner in 2001), and Ħaġar Qim Prehistoric Temples. The evening programme commenced with the “Semper Europa Nostra Concert” by Soprano Lydia Caruana and the Medit Chamber Players at the Auberge d'Aragon which was followed by a reception hosted by The Hon Dr Tonio Borg, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Justice and Home Affairs.

Farewell and welcome to the outgoing and incoming Executive Presidents

During the General Assembly, Dr Andrea H. Schuler (Switzerland) took office as Europa Nostra’s new Executive President, succeeding Otto von der Gablentz. Dr Schuler, who was a Vice-President of Europa Nostra since 2000, had been elected to the position by the General Assembly in Bergen on 2 June 2005. HRH the Prince Consort of Denmark, President of Europa Nostra, Vice-President Costa Carras, Vice-President Alexander zu Sayn Wittgenstein Sayn and the Secretary General paid tribute to the outgoing Executive President, in particular to his strong commitment to the European ideals, his inspiring leadership and his outstanding diplomatic skills. They praised his remarkable contribution to Europa Nostra’s intellectual reflection on the role of culture, cultural heritage and education within the “European project”. This helped Europa Nostra to better define its position in the European debate, and to further stress the important role which the protection and enhancement of our monuments, sites and landscapes play in forging the identity of the European citizen. Apart from his personal commitment and intellectual contribution, his extensive network of contacts, built up during his long international career, was a clear asset for Europa Nostra. As a token of gratitude for his four year executive presidency, the Council presented to Otto von der Gablentz an original 17th century map of Europe, by the Dutch cartographer Hondius and unanimously elected him Honorary President.

Dr Andrea H. Schuler, in his inaugural speech stressed the importance of Europa Nostra intensifying its efforts in reaching Europe ’s citizens on cultural heritage matters. He noted that Europa Nostra is well-known and respected by the Council of Europe and the European Union Institutions. Having recently been chosen as new Liasion Office for the co-ordination of the “European Heritage Days” – a joint action of the Council of Europe and the European Commission – is proof of how Europa Nostra is held in high esteem in Strasbourg and in Brussels. He stressed however that, bearing in mind that Europa Nostra strives to represent the civil society heritage movement throughout Europe, it needs to become better known by the general public. It also needs to substantially increase the number of its individual members, member organisations, associated and corporate members by convincing people that cultural heritage counts for everybody. Cultural heritage is an indispensable source for our quality of life. Respect for human life cannot be separated from respect for peoples’ cultural values, especially their heritage. He particularly called on Europa Nostra’s member organisations to become more engaged in spreading this message, in addition to communicating Europa Nostra’s aims and activities via their own networks.

Statutory bodies: Elections by the Council and the General Assembly

The General Assembly also elected the following new members of Council: Christine Adrien, (France) as the representative of Vieilles Maison Françaises; Jacques Akerboom (The Netherlands) as the representative of Monumentenwacht Nederland; Rossana Bettinelli (Italy) as the representative of Italia Nostra; Philippe Biéler (Switzerland) as the representative of Schweizer Heimatschutz/Patrimoine Suisse; Piet Jaspaert (Belgium) as the representative of Vlaams Contact Monumenten (VCM); Prof. Dr. Michael Krautzberger (Germany) as the representative of Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz; Ambassador Gian Federico Pedotti (Switzerland) as the representative of Domus Antiqua Helvetica; Špela Spanžel (Slovenia) as the representative of Slovenia Nostra; Dr Orhan Silier (Turkey) as the representative of the History Foundation of Turkey and Adam Wilkinson (United Kingdom) as the representative of Save Europe’s Heritage.

In addition the General Assembly re-elected the following Vice-Presidents: Costa Carras (Greece), Catharina Collet (Denmark) and Duque de San Carlos (Spain). Seven Council members were also re-elected by the General Assembly: Markus Bernoulli, representing the Finish Association of Architect s and the Finish association for Local Culture and Heritage; Isabelle de Broglie, representing Europa Nostra France; Christiane van Jole-Taeymans, representing Europa Nostra Belgium; Ieva Laukers, representing Latvia Nostra; Martin Scicluna, representing Din l-Art Helwa; Prof. Dr Irina Subotić , representing Serbia Nostra and Jozef van Waeyenberge, representing Europa Nostra Belgium.

At its meeting on 18 May, the Europa Nostra Council co-opted Dr Jelka Pirkovič (Slovenia). It also renewed the co-option of: Dr Lester Borley CBE (United Kingdom), Dr Peter Collins CBE (United Kingdom) , the Robert de Léotoing d'Anjony (France) and Dott. Piero Ravaioli (Italy/Belgium). The Council re-elected Catharina Collet (Denmark) to the Management Committee, re-appointed Professor Gianni Perbellini (Italy) as the Chairman of the Scientific Council and reappointed the Secretary General, Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović (The Netherlands / Serbia).

Finally, the General Assembly and the Council took note of the retirement of the following board members and thanked them for their past contributions: Dr Paul Scholten (The Netherlands) and Frank Sweerts (The Netherlands / Belgium) from the Council; and Alexander Fürst zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn (Germany) from the Management Committee.

New Member Organisations and Associate Organisations

At its meeting, the Europa Nostra Council approved the membership of the following heritage NGOs as Member Organisations: from the CZECH REPUBLIC: Klub Za Starou Prahu (Association for Old Prague www.zastarouprahu.cz), and Hrady na Malši (Castles on the Malse River Society www.hradynamalsi.cz); from FRANCE: Charte européenne des abbayes et sites cisterciens (The European Charter of Cistercian Abbeys and Sites www.cister.net); from GERMANY: Denkmal Akademie e.V. (The Heritage Academy www.denkmalakademie.de) and FörderKreis Kultur & Schlösser (Association for Culture and Castles www.kultur-schloesser.de); from PORTUGAL: Associação Portuguesa dos Amigos dos Castelos (The Portuguese Association of Friends of Castles www.amigosdoscastelos.org.pt); from THE NETHERLANDS: the European Federation of Museum and Tourist Railways (FEDECRAIL www.fedecrail.org); from the RUSSIAN FEDERATION: the Moscow Architect ure Preservation Society (MAPS www.maps-moscow.com) and the Russian National Centre for Heritage Trusteeship (www.ntrust.ru); from TURKEY: the Friends of Cultural Heritage (FOCUH www.friendsofculturalheritage.org).

The Council also approved the membership of the following bodies as Associate Organisations: from BELGIUM: Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen 1138 (Ten Duinen Abbey Museum www.tenduinen.be); from ITALY: Università Politecnica delle Marche (www.univpm.it); from SPAIN: Fundación Diego de Sagredo; from SWEDEN: Fortifikationsverket (the National Fortifications Administration www.fortv.se); from TURKEY: the Bursa Chamber of Architect s (www.bursamimar.org.tr) and from the UNITED KINGDOM: Newcastle upon Tyne City Council (www.newcastle.gov.uk).

Following Europa Nostra’s partnership with Exponatec Cologne (www.exponatec.de), fifty public and private bodies became Associate Organisations of Europa Nostra. From AUSTRIA: Siemens AG Österreich (www.siemens.com); from GERMANY 235 Media GmbH (www.235media.com), Acar-tonwelt GmbH (www.tonwelt.com), Antenna Audio GmbH (www.antennaaudio.com), Artemondo GmbH (www.artemondo.com), Beckerbillett Hamburg Billettfabrik GmbH (www.beckerbillett.de), Burkhardt Leitner constructiv GmbH & Co. KG (www.burkhardtleitner.de), F.G. Conzen GmbH (www.conzen.de), CRUSE GmbH Digital Imaging Equipment, First Glas GmbH (www.first-glas.com), Frank Europe GmbH (www.frankeurope.com), G+B pronova GmbH (www.gb-pronova.de), Glasbau Hahn GmbH + Co. KG (www.glasbau-hahn.de), Hasenkamp Internationale Transporte GmbH (www.hasenkamp.com), Hinrichs FotoFactory (www.fotofactory.de), Werkstätten Galerie Holtmann (www.galerie-holtmann.de), ICON GmbH (www.iconnet.de), Iguide Kulturaufnahme GmbH (www.iguide.de), Die Informations- gesellschaft mbH (www.informationsgesellschaft.com), Karthäuser-Breuer GmbH (www.karthaeuser-breuer.de), KLC Ticketing GmbH (www.klc-ticketing.com), LE BON IMAGE GmbH (www.bon-image.com), LORD Cultural Resources GmbH (www.lord.ca), Magista b.v. Niederlassung Deutschland (www.magista-brd.de), Marioff GmbH (www.marioff.de), MBA Design & Display Produkt GmbH, MOBOTIX AG (www.mobotix.com), MUSEUM AKTUELL Verlag, Museumstechnik GmbH (www.museumstechnik.com), ORO FINO Vergolderwerkstatt (www.oro-fino.de), Vitrinen- und Glasbau Reier GmbH (www.reier.de), Schenkerart Schenker Deutschland AG , SCHOTT AG Corporate Marketing (www.schott.com), Glas + Spiegel - Schulz GSK - Museumseinrichtungen (www.glasschulz.de), Sehner GmbH Museumseinrichtungen Glas-/Vitrinenbau, Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co.KG (www.sennheiser.com), Soundgarden audioguidance GmbH (www.audioguide.de), stabaArte GmbH (www.stabaArte.de), Museion Versand, Sycomore Audio Guide GmbH (www.sycomore.de), System 2040 (www.system2040.com), TEMUS GmbH Techn.Museumseinrichtungen (www.temus.de), Total Walther GmbH Feuerschutz und Sicherheit (www.tycoint.com), Track & Slide (www.trackandslide.com), Voluma GmbH (www.voluma.net), Voss & Schild GmbH & Co.KG (www.artus-gruppe.com), WAGNER Alarm- und Sicherungssysteme GmbH (www.wagner.de), Zetcom AG (www.zetcom.de), Deutscher Museumsbund e.V. (www.museumsbund.de), and from ITALY: Goppion S.r.l. Laboratorio Museotecnico (www.goppion.com )

Meetings of the Europa Nostra Working Groups

At their meetings in Saint Julian’s, Malta, the Europa Nostra Working Groups addressed a series of topical heritage policy issues. The European Policy Working Group discussed the need to update Europa Nostra’s position paper, “Cultural Heritage Counts for Europe ” in the light of the recent policy developments at European level. The Landscape Working Group anticipated on the release by the European Commission of a Green Paper for an all-embracing EU Maritime Policy, and discussed the way to coordinate Europa Nostra’s contribution to the consultation with all stakeholders (more). The Central and Eastern Europe Working Group addressed a range of topics, including the Norwegian EEA Financial Mechanism (www.eeagrants.org), an instrument with considerable funds available for heritage projects in the ten new EU Member States plus Greece, Spain and Portugal. They also reviewed recent cases of heritage at risk in the region, and agreed on the need to increase Europa Nostra’s presence in Central and Eastern Europe.

Further information : Mark Snethlage, imo@europanostra.org , +31 70 302 40 51

Europa Nostra Forum on Cultural Tourism

19 May, St Julian’s, Malta

Europe Needs to Strike the Right Balance between Tourism Development and Heritage Conservation

At its Annual Congress in Malta , Europa Nostra adopted “the Malta Declaration” advocating the right balance between economic development, sustainable tourism and heritage conservation, which includes the prevention of undesirable overdevelopment and related damage to the cultural heritage through careful planning.

Speakers at the Forum included Malta’s Minister for Culture and Tourism, Dr Francis Zammit Dimech, as well as Dr Mario Tabone, Chairman of Heritage Malta, Tricia Barnett, Director of “Tourism Concern” (UK), Nigel Adams (UK), Director of the European Cultural Tourism Network, Dr Lester Borley (UK), Council member of Europa Nostra, Prof. Carlos Fernandes (Portugal) and Tiago Pitta e Cunha, member of the Cabinet of European Commissioner Joe Borg, responsible for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs. Europa Nostra Council Member Martin Scicluna (Din l-Art Helwa) “drew the threads together”. Europa Nostra expresses its warm thanks to Mr Scicluna for the preparation and organisation of this important Forum.

The Malta Declaration calls upon EU Institutions, the Council of Europe, Europe’s national and regional governments, tourism and heritage organisations to apply the principles in “Tourism Code of Ethics” of the World Tourism Organisation and the “International Cultural Tourism Charter” of ICOMOS. While welcoming the recent documents of various EU Institutions (the European Commission, European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Committee) and the Council of Europe which have focused on the need for sustainable tourism development, the Malta Declaration recommends that the principles embodied in the two above-mentioned documents, which underscore Europa Nostra’s commitment and approach to cultural tourism, be fully incorporated into future EU policy. Following the Malta Forum, Europa Nostra is currently preparing a position paper on the subject to be submitted to the European Institutions.

Further information: Mr Martin Scicluna, Din l-Art Helwa, martins@onvol.net

Meeting with Spanish Heritage NGOs

26 June 2006, Madrid, Spain

Prior to the European Heritage Awards Ceremony, Europa Nostra’s representation in Spain, Hispania Nostra, organised a meeting with Spanish heritage NGOs. Wherever Europa Nostra meets in Europe, it tries to engage a dialogue with the representatives of local and national heritage organizations, in order to exchange ideas and to increase its understanding of national and local concerns.

This meeting was attended by representatives of the Asociación Española de Gestores de Patrimonio Cultural (www.aegpc.org), the Asociación Española de Amigos de los Castillos (www.castillosasociacion.es), the Fundación Casas Históricas y Singulares (www.casashistoricas.com), the Fundación Caja Madrid (www.fundacioncajamadrid.es), the Real Fundación de Toledo (www.realfundaciontoledo.es), the Fundación Santa María de Albarracín (www.fundacionsantamariadealbarracin.com), the Fundación Santa María la Real-Centro de Estudios del Románico de Aguilar de Campoo (www.santamarialareal.org) and the Comisión de Monumentos y Patrimonio Histórico de la Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (http://rabasf.insde.es).

The meeting was presided over by D. Alfredo Perez de Armiñan de la Serna, President of Hispania Nostra. Delegates of the Spanish NGOs presented the aims and recent achievements of their organizations. Following the introduction by Dr Andrea H. Schuler, Executive President of Europa Nostra, Secretary General Sneska Quaedvlieg Mihailovic presented the wide range of Europa Nostra’s activities and called for a more active role on the part of the Spanish NGOs in keeping Europa Nostra informed of heritage concerns in Spain and contributing to its policy and awareness raising activities.

Further information : Maria Chapa, Hispania Nostra, hispanianostra@infonegocio.es, www.hispanianostra.org

First formal contacts with Lithuanian Heritage NGOs established

1 - 3 April & May 2006, Vilnius, Lithuania

Nordic Council members of Europa Nostra meeting in Vilnius on 1 April, grasped the occasion to establish a first contact with representatives of the civil society working in the field of cultural heritage in Lithuania. On 3 April, with the invaluable help of the Danish Cultural Institute in Lithuania, they organised a meeting with 40 representatives of Lithuanian heritage NGOs and other heritage bodies. Europa Nostra Council member Thomas Willoch presided over the meeting and presented Europa Nostra’s activities, its broader aims and current concerns. Some of the participants presented the activities of their organisations. In the discussion that ensued topics included current cases of heritage at risk were reviewed, and opportunities for the cultural heritage field offered by the EEA Financial Mechanism. The meeting prepared the field for a more active presence of Europa Nostra in Lithuania in the near future. These first contacts were soon after consolidated by a visit of Europa Nostra Vice President Catharina Collet to Vilnius in May, when it was decided to formally establish a Europa Nostra in Lithuania organisation.

Further information : Catharina Collet, Europa Nostra Denmark , catharina@collet.dk

Europa Nostra participation in other events

ENCATC Seminar: Mediation in Historic Places

30 March – 1 April, Fontevraud Abbey (France)

Europa Nostra was represented by its Vice President Denis Kergorlay and Prof. Peter Howard (individual member and Editor of the International Journal of Heritage Studies) at a seminar on “Mediation in Historic Places”, at the Abbey of Fontrevaud (France). The meeting was co-organised by Claire Giraud-Labalte, of the Université catholique de l'Ouest (Angers) and Giannalia Cogliandro, Executive Director of ENCATC, the European Network for Cultural Administration Training Centres www.encatc.org.

Interpretation (English equivalent of “médiation”) and participation were the two leading themes of the seminar. During the debates it emerged that heritage interpretation services should more fully integrate the needs of the users and the expertise of the providers, rather than the “patronizing” top down model, still widely applied today. There was widest agreement to the idea that many different groups of “users” of the cultural heritage existed, and their needs could be serviced by astute interpretation.

Further information : Prof. Peter Howard, peterjhoward@btinternet.com; Giannalia Cogliandro, Executive Director of ENCATC, g.cogliandro@encatc.org

Cultural Heritage in the 21st Century. Opportunities and Challenges

24–28 May, Krako , Poland

Europa Nostra's Vice-President Denis de Kergorlay and Secretary General Sneska Quaedvlieg Mihailovic participated in the conference “Cultural Heritage in the 21st Century. Opportunities and Challenges”, organised by the International Cultural Centre, Krakow (Poland) from 24 to 28 May.

Organised by Prof Jacek Purchla, member of Europa Nostra’s Council, the conference focused on three themes: “Heritage and transformation. The Central and Eastern European experience”; “Towards the global philosophy of heritage conservation“ and “New trends in the management of heritage institutions”. The Seminar also generated an international discussion on the global philosophy of heritage, on the Central European experience of heritage protection and management as well as a new trend in the heritage field.

Further information : www.mck.krakow.pl/stara/conference/04b_3v1.htm

Safeguarded Cultural Heritage – Understanding & Viability for the Enlarged Europe

7th European Conference SAUVEUR, 31 May – 3 June, Prague , Czech Republic

Over 280 participants from 37 countries participated in this conference organised by the Czech Academy of Sciences with the support of the European Commission. The results of research in cultural heritage issues supported through the Framework Research programmes were presented. Eléonore de Merode, Heritage Awards Coordinator at Europa Nostra's International Secretariat, participated in the meeting and gave a presentation “Challenges of European Cultural Heritage Research: A Viewpoint from Civil Society”. A final message called for the European Institutions to integrate cultural heritage issues into all relevant areas of the 7th Framework programme and to increase support for cultural heritage research; as well as to mitigate unintentional adverse effects of EU legislation on cultural heritage. The Conference also encouraged the establishment of public-private partnerships for the benefit of the heritage community.

Further information : http://www.arcchip.cz/ec-conference/

ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee Workshop

9-13 June 2006, Seoul, South Korea

“The Impact of Mass Tourism on Historic Villages” was the theme of both the “ICOMOS Asia Pacific Regional Meeting” and the “International Cultural Tourism Committee Workshop” meeting in Seoul in June 2006 at which Council Member Emil van Brederode (The Netherlands) represented Europa Nostra. The meeting was attended by fifty delegates representing 25 Asian national ICOMOS Committees. In his presentation, Emil van Brederode described the European Heritage Days to the mostly Asian audience and underlined the new role that Europa Nostra plays as the Liaison Office for the EHD. He also presented the Malta Declaration on Cultural Tourism which had been distributed to the participants. Mr Graham Brooks, Chairman of the ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee welcomed this Europa Nostra Declaration adopted in Malta on 18 May 2006 and noted that it was as a major step forward in the promotion of the ethics and principles of the Cultural Tourism Charter.

Further information : Emil van Brederode, Director of Stichting NCM, vanbrederode@erfgoedhuis.nl

Promoting Cultural Education in Europe - A Contribution to Participation, Innovation and Quality

8 - 10 June 2006, Graz, Austria

The Conference was organised as a contribution Austrian (which held the EU Presidency in the first semester of 2006) to position cultural education higher on the political agenda of the EU. The Ministry of Education, Science and Culture together with KulturKontakt Austria organised a expert conference “Promoting Cultural Education: A Contribution to Participation, Innovation and Quality” to further improve European cooperation in the field. Europa Nostra was represented by its Council Member Dr Wiltraud Resch (Europa Nostra Austria ).

Further information : www.conference-cultural-education.at/en/; www.culture-school.net

Other announcements

Creation of a new International Committee of ICOMOS on the Interpretation and Presentation of Cultural Heritage Sites

24 March, Ghent , Belgium

The aim of this Committee is to define the basic objectives and principles of site interpretation and presentation in relation to techniques and application of technologies, authenticity, intellectual integrity, social responsibility, and respect for cultural significance and context. The Committee recognises that the interpretation of cultural heritage sites can be contentious and should acknowledge conflicting perspectives, and their open and honest recognition can enrich contemporary reflections about the significance of heritage. The first meeting of the ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on Interpretation and Presentation was convened by the committee president, Neil Silberman, on 24 March 2006 at the Provincial Capitol Building in Ghent, Belgium.

Further information : http://icip.icomos.org

Master’s programme in European Rural Development

A new distance learning programme, launched by the University of Gloucestershire (England), offers the chance to study European Rural Development from one’s workplace or home anywhere in Europe, either on a part-time or full-time basis. The course is aimed at professionals in rural development, or those who want to build on a first degree to develop a career in this field. Tutorial support is available. There will be an introduction event and a summer school, to enable students to share ideas and experiences with other students and with teaching staff.

Further information : Professor Bill Slee, bslee@glos.ac.uk,

www.glos.ac.uk/subjectsandcourses/postgraduatetaught/erd/index.cfm