The 8th EUCP Forum addresses the protection of cultural heritage at risk

The 8^th European Civil Protection Forum taking place in Brussels next  4 - 5 June 2024 is a biannual event that focuses on key policy and operational issues to inspire future developments in the Union Civil Protection Mechanism - UCPM, and generate networks and opportunities for collaboration in the field of disaster risk management. This edition is entitled “Shaping a disaster-resilient Union: charting a path for the future of European civil protection”. 

Due to the growing significance of the topic in enhancing technical and operational risk management capacities associated with the protection of cultural heritage, the Forum will be dedicating a panel discussion on “Risk reduction strategies in cultural heritage”. On 5 June 2024 at 14:15 PROCULTHER-NET 2 and AFAD (Türkiye) will discuss global and European approaches that can contribute to face the challenges posed by emerging risks.

PROCULTHER initiatives are not newcomers to the Forum. In the 2022 edition, PROCULTHER and PROCULTHER-NET were showcased consolidating the pivotal role earned in recent years by advocating for a paradigm shift towards the inclusion of cultural heritage protection within the UCPM processes and structures. Indeed, since 2019 PROCULTHER initiatives have grown considerably, contributing to strengthen cultural heritage protection by developing technical and operational capacities and enhancing knowledge sharing within the Union Civil Protection Knowledge Network-UCPKN to feed this sector.

This panel discussion will be a further opportunity for PROCULTHER-NET 2, the ongoing project (2024-2025) co-funded by DG ECHO, to consolidate and further expand the thematic community dedicated to the protection of cultural heritage at risk established within the UCPKN and collect insights on the objectives and results expected by the thematic community.

In order to collect feedback and opinions from EU institutions, UNESCO and UCPM Participating states and to provide participants with topics to explore during the discussion, the main issues addressed will be:

1. Collaboration between cultural heritage and disaster risk management (DRM) actors to establish a cultural heritage protection governance that fosters strategic actions for interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral cooperation in all DRM phases.
2. Definition of standard operating procedures and tools to integrate cultural heritage protection within DRM plans.
3. Involvement of various territorial levels, both national and European, to ensure consistency of the proposed approaches and adequate know-how transfer processes.
4. Promotion of the role of knowledge holders to risk-inform strategies and actions to feed the cultural heritage protection sector.

Mr Giovanni De Siervo, PROCULTHER-NET Project Director from the Italian Civil Protection Department, will moderate the session involving prominent speakers who will bring to the discussion multidisciplinary perspectives at international and local level. 

Ms Louise Haxthausen, UNESCO Representative to the European Union, will describe the challenges experienced by this leading actor in global coordination in this field and the added-value of the interdisciplinary and interagency collaboration for a better protection of cultural heritage, namely with the Mechanism, for instance in the definition of standard operating procedures for intervention such as those proposed by PROCULTHER. 

Afterwards, Mr Stefan Zotti, Team leader for cultural heritage at the Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture - DG EAC, will share the work carried out by the European Commission to enhance cross-sectoral collaboration among the various agencies involved in the protection of cultural heritage during emergencies and to propose elements to include climate change in DRM strategies for cultural heritage. 

The third panellist, Ms Burcu Ertaş Deniz, Geological Engineer from the Turkish Ministry of Interior - AFAD, will present the perspective from a DG-ECHO funded project implemented in Türkiye that is defining risk reduction procedures for cultural heritage at local and national level. In addition, she will share the main achievements from the recent emergencies in the country, the efforts made in building bridges to improve the collaboration between civil protection and cultural heritage experts and institutions, and the challenges faced to reinforce a national and local cultural heritage governance to ensure an effective protection in emergency. 

To complete the picture, Dr Yasemin D. Aktas, Deputy Director at the UK Centre for Moisture in Buildings, University College London, will provide the session with the technical approach of research, clarifying the potential contribution that knowledge holders can make to the elaboration of risk reduction strategies for cultural heritage. In particular, Dr Aktas will be invited to explain how research findings can impact the disaster risk management community and to outline how a research-based approach can be effectively taken into account in the further development of the shared standards and common language proposed by PROCULTHER, so as to ensure their value also from an academic point of view. 

In the wake of the Forum slogan “Charting a path for the future of European civil protection” proposed by this edition, experts attending this event are invited to join the panel session and feed the debate so as to find elements to further boost this sector’s development both at national and European level. All interested participants can join the panel on Wednesday 5 June at STUDIO 3 from 14:15 to 15:45.

Finally, interested stakeholders wishing to learn more about the next PROCULTHER-NET 2 actions, including first responders, representatives from governments, local, national, and regional civil protection authorities, EU institutions, the scientific community, and the private sector, will have the opportunity to meet with project representatives at the Civil Protection Village, the exhibition area organised alongside the Forum.