Australia ICOMOS
E-Mail News No. 317
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An information service provided by the Australia ICOMOS Secretariat
Friday 18 January 2008
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1) Report by Simon Molesworth on the New Delhi Conference,
December 2007
2) APT Montreal 2008 - call for papers
3) Getty Foundation Grant Announcement For Icom-CC New Delhi 2008 -
Announcement
4) Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts: Media
Release - Fossils returned to China
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1) Report by Simon Molesworth on
the New Delhi Conference, December 2007
In an exceptional demonstration of international cooperation,
the majority of the world's National Trusts and like heritage
organizations signed the Charter of the new international heritage
organization INTO, the International National Trust Organisation, on
Monday 3rd December in an extraordinarily impressive ceremony in New
Delhi presided over by the Vice President of India. By the time the
session was over, just under sixty organizations had signed the Charter
confirming their determination to work together to promote the
conservation and enhancement of the cultural and natural heritage of all
nations for the benefit of the people of the world.
Among those Trusts that signed was the "mother" Trust from England, Wales
and Northern Ireland, together with a diverse range from around the world
including the USA, Scotland, Canada, Russia, India, the Netherlands,
Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Malta, Ireland, Nepal, Slovakia, Taiwan, Korea,
Transylvania, Bermuda, amongst many others. Many other signatories from
government agencies signed the Charter as affiliates indicating their
willingness to work with INTO with the aim of establishing National
Trusts in their countries, these included Cambodia, Afghanistan, a number
of African countries and a number of the former Soviet republics. From
Australia, ACNT Chairman Pat Comben signed for the Australian Council of
National Trusts; Eric Martin, President of the ACT National Trust signed
for his Trust; and Ian Stephenson, CEO of the National Trust in South
Australia signed for his Trust.
The International Conference itself was an outstanding success, with
almost 400 delegates, including some seventy countries being represented.
By all measures the Conference was remarkable, not the least reason being
the level of support given by the Indian Government starting with the
Indian Prime Minister himself opening the Conference with a large number
of ambassadors and high commissioners in attendance. Every day there was
one or other major event organized, hosted by either senior Indian
Government officials or an international agency, such as the Asian
Development Bank. The cultural component of the Conference was
outstanding with displays of art, music and dance, and excellent
conference tours to key heritage places. The quality of the presentations
was excellent, as were the two plenary sessions assigned to discussing
the objectives and operational arrangements for INTO. In the course of
these sessions, it became very apparent that there is a huge need across
the world's developing nations for "capacity building". Many are seeking
guidance on how to establish and operate National Trusts, while others
seek assistance in kind to strengthen their operations. Without dissent
across the assembled delegates, all were filled with encouragement and
enthusiasm at the formation of INTO as a new world voice in the heritage
field.
The Conference attracted much media attention, with many detailed
articles appearing in all the major press. Simon Molesworth appeared
twice in the Times of India with in-depth interviews and photographs.
Simon, who had led the INTO Steering Committee over the last 18 months,
was reappointed Chairman of the INTO Committee at the close of the
Conference. The INTO Committee immediately started work on a whole range
of business items including: the arrangements for the INTO World
Headquarters being set up at St Anne's Gate in London; the selection
procedure for the INTO Secretary-General and secretariat staff; the
establishment of the INTO website on which are to be posted pro-forma
legislative and non-legislative models and guidelines for National
Trusts; the identification of regional groupings; and the arrangements
for next international conference in September/October 2009 - which will
be in Europe.
Finally, there were excellent indications throughout the Conference that
a number of senior international agencies are likely to support INTO in
tangible ways. With representatives from agencies such as UNESCO, the
World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the Heritage Lottery Fund
(amongst others) being present and witnessing the groundswell of support
from across the globe, many invitations were issued to the INTO Committee
to enter into discussions regarding potential options of support. Many
expressed the view that they felt they had participated in "history in
the making" as the new organization launched forth.
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2) APT Montreal 2008 - call for
papers
APT Montreal 2008 - APT's 40th Anniversary Conference
MOVING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK
VERS L'AVANT, EN SE SOUVENANT
The Association for Preservation Technology International is accepting
abstracts for its 2008 Conference in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The
deadline for submissions is Monday, February 18, 2008.
The Call for Papers and the electronic Abstract Submission Form are
available on line at
www.apti.org.
Abstracts are being solicited for paper presentations and panel
discussions on the themes of 'Sustainable Heritage Conservation' and
'Conservation Technology and Philosophy'.
A paper will be presented with two other papers selected by APT to create
one, one-and-a-half hour session. A panel discussion will be put together
by the submitter to include a moderator and panelists for one,
one-and-a-half hour session.
Paper and panel presenters will be able to attend the conference at a
registration rate less than the lowest member rate.
For information, contact Dana Saal, conference manager, at
dana@apti.org or 217/529-9039.
Conference details, for your information:
APT Montreal 2008
October 13-17, 2008
Hilton Montreal Bonaventure
The conference theme, 'Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Heritage
Conservation', celebrates not only the membership profile of APT but the
increasingly interdisciplinary nature of heritage conservation (generally
referred to as historic preservation in the US) approaches over the last
four decades.
Agenda-at-a-Glance
Monday, October 13
Field Session (full day)
APT Board of Directors Meeting
Opening Reception and Keynote Address
Tuesday, October 14
Paper Sessions and Panel Discussions
Field Sessions
College of Fellow Reception and 40th Anniversary Awards Banquet
Wednesday, October 15
Paper Sessions and Panel Discussions
College of Fellows Lecture
APT Annual Social and Student Scholarship Auction
Thursday, October 16
Field Sessions
Workshops and Symposium, Day 1
Friday, October 17
Workshops and Symposium, Day 2
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3) Getty Foundation Grant
Announcement For Icom-CC New Delhi 2008 - Announcement
"Grants for the ICOM-CC 15th Triennial Conference - New
Delhi, India, 22-26 September 2008"
Thanks to The Getty Foundation, the International Council of Museums
(ICOM) is able to offer a limited number of bursaries to museum and/or
conservation professionals from low-income countries in Africa, Asia and
the Pacific, Europe, and Latin America to attend the 15th Triennial
Conference of ICOM's International Committee for Conservation
(ICOM-CC).
Grant application forms are available at the Conference website
(www.icom-cc2008.org), at the
ICOM-CC website (www.icom-cc.org)
and also by request from the ICOM -CC Secretariat:
ICOM-CC Secretariat
c/o ICCROM
E-mail: secretariat@icom-cc.org
Via di San Michele, 13
00153 Rome, Italy
Fax: (39) 06 58 553 349
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4) Department of the Environment,
Water, Heritage and the Arts: Media Release - Fossils returned to China
Priceless History Protected: Fossils Returned to China
A mammoth 750 kilograms of illegally imported dinosaur, mammal and
reptile fossils seized by Australian officials were today handed back to
the Chinese Government.
Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Peter Garrett,
formally returned the fossils to His Excellency Mr Zhang Junsai,
Ambassador of the People's Republic of China, at a ceremony in
Canberra.
"These fossils from provinces across China are of incredible cultural and
scientific value to the People's Republic and to the world," Mr Garrett
said.
"Ranging from dinosaur eggs to marine reptiles, fish and crustaceans,
they are national treasures that tell a fascinating story about different
geological periods and ancient environments.
"Some are believed to be up to 450 million years old, and the rarest are
considered priceless because of their value to China's scientific and
cultural heritage."
The fossils were seized between 2004 and 2007 under the Australian
Government's Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986, in
a number of joint operations by the Australian Federal Police and the
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. The most
recent seizure took place in November 2007.
"Australia was one of the first countries to respond to China's request
for help in tracking down and returning their invaluable cultural
heritage," Mr Garrett said.
"The fossils were seized from eight different parties in nine separate
seizures. They were forfeited to the Australian Government as the
importers were unable to demonstrate that the fossils had been legally
exported from China."
China does not grant permits for sale or permanent export and only allows
fossils to be temporarily exported for exhibition and scientific
research.
"We have been delighted to work with the Chinese Government to return
these illegal imports for preservation and research, to ensure they are
protected for future generations," Mr Garrett said.
"Our successful operations send a strong message to the world that
Australia will not tolerate illicit trade in cultural heritage
objects."
This repatriation follows the return of 10,000 illegally imported Chinese
fossils in September 2005. Other objects seized recently include 130
kilograms of dinosaur and plant fossils returned to the Argentine
Republic in August 2007, 16 Dyak Skulls returned to Malaysia in May 2007,
and an Asmat human skull from Papua returned to Indonesia in December
2006.
For more information and high resolution images of the
fossils:
www.environment.gov.au/heritage
Media contact: Margot Marshall 02 6277 7640 or 0418 624
847
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Australia ICOMOS Secretariat
Georgia Meros, Secretariat Officer
Cultural Heritage Centre for Asia and the Pacific
Deakin University
221 Burwood Highway
Burwood Victoria 3125
Telephone: (03) 9251 7131
Facsimile: (03) 9251 7158
Email: austicomos@deakin.edu.au
http://www.icomos.org/australia
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