INTRODUCTION: 301 THE ROLE OF ICAHM IN SUPPORTING ICOMOS AND UNESCO IN THE CONTEXT OF WORLD HERITAGE
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 2021-02-10

This session aims at discussing the role of archaeologists in general and heritage managers in particular in the context of World Heritage (WH), as ICAHM is UNESCO’s advisory body for this topic. Europe is the region with most WH sites in the world. Many of them are archaeological sites. On the one hand, this imbalance is a sign for the ‘hegemonic Western vision of Archaeological (Cultural) Heritage’ (UNESCO’s Global Strategy 1994), on the other hand Europe serves as a great field experiment in heritage management. This session wants to discuss examples of best practice or other experiences highlighting archaeological heritage management issues at European World Heritage Sites. The main objectives are:
• To present ICAHM’s Scientific Committee and the opportunities this international non-governmental organisation
(INGO) offers to archaeologists.
• To discuss new challenges that archaeological heritage management faces (i.e. community involvement, evaluation
systems, management plan strategies, conflicts of interpretation and decolonization models, conservation, environmental relationships, and contemporary archaeology).
• To establish a closer relationship between European archaeologists in order to grasp specific necessities of the area
and discuss possible solutions that the ICAHM committee could implement.
We also welcome papers on WH sites from outside Europe to compare challenges and solutions across different world regions.

In this context we would like to discuss how archaeologists from Europe can and should work outside Europe for example in processes of decolonization, together with African initiatives.


Organisers: Castillo, Alicia (Complutense University of Madrid; European Vicepresident of ICAHM. ICOMOS) - Musteata, Sergiu (“Ion Creanga” University of Chisinau; ICAHM)