ALUMNI - Events
WHS and BTU Cottbus regularly organize events such as summer schools, conferences, symposia and festivals aimed to encourage dialogue and professional networking.
UPCOMING EVENTS
The International Association of World Heritage Professionals e.V. (IAWHP e.V.) is organising a WHS Alumni Symposium and Workshop on “Understanding Each Other’s Heritage –Challenges for Heritage Communication in a Globalized World” to be held in BTU Cottbus from 19th-21th July 2012. This WHS Alumni Conference is the second of a series of events and activities being planned by IAWHP e.V. since its official recognition as a non-profit organisation by German Law in 2010. Moreover, the conference is being organised in the context in the context of the celebration of the
40th anniversary of the 1972 World Heritage Convention.
Supported by the German Acadamic Exchange Service (DAAD), the conference aims to bring together a wide range of academics, professionals and practitioners (WHS Alumni and other experts alike) specialising in World Heritage as well as other associated fields to contribute to the ongoing discussion about the role of the World Heritage Convention in promoting sutainable development.
More information about the Symposium is available here.
PAST EVENTS
"World Heritage and Sustainable Development"
WHS Alumni Conference, BTU Cottbus
16 – 19 June 2011
The International Association of World Heritage Professionals e.V. (IAWHP e.V.) is organising a WHS Alumni Conference on “World Heritage and Sustainable Development”. Supported by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and by the German Federal Foreign Office (AA) funds, this conference is the first of a series of events being organised by IAWHP e.V. since its official recognition as a non-profit organisation under German Law in 2010.
The conference aims to bring together a wide range of academics, professionals and practitioners (WHS Alumni and other experts alike) specialising in World Heritage and related fields to contribute to the ongoing discussion about the role of the World Heritage Convention in promoting sustainable development.
During three scientific sessions - Conservation and Managing Change, Climate Change and Millennium Development Goals - and related poster sessions, the participants will discuss, amongst others, the following questions:
- What does conservation in the context of World Heritage sites mean?
- What are acceptable limits of change to a particular site?
- How can the kind and level of change brought about by climate change in World Heritage sites be determined?
- Which changes are critical to the future of the built, natural, social and cultural values of heritage sites?
- How can World Heritage sites become a core asset in the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals?
Further details about the conference are available on IAWHP e.V.'s website: www.iawhp.com, and for queries related to the conference and IAWHP e.V., please contact 
whs.conference2011[at]tu-cottbus.de and info[at]iawhp.com respectively.
WHS celebrates its 10th anniversary
"World Heritage and Cultural Diversity – Challenges for University Education", Cottbus, Germany
23 – 26 October, 2009
The UNESCO Chair in World Heritage Studies at Brandenburg University of Technology is pleased to host an international conference on "World Heritage and Cultural Diversity – Challenges for University Education".
The event is being co-organised by the German Commission for UNESCO and in co-operation with the Association Vocations Patrimoine. The conference patrons are the German Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UNESCO Word Heritage Centre.
The conference aims to discuss in which way World Heritage sites show aspects of cultural diversity and how these aspects can better be used for the involvement of communities. Another aim is to connect a broad understanding of diversity with existing and future discourses on heritage and its protection. The subject of the conference reflects the current scientific and political discussion of World Heritage, as the sustainable protection of World Heritage sites has reached a new dimension in the context of the opportunities and challenges of cultural diversity.
Four panels will discuss the topics outlined below.
- How can the diversity of World Heritage be strengthened and how can new dimensions be developed for defining Outstanding Universal Value?
- To what extent are new instruments like the UN’s Millennium Declaration and the 2007 Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples taken into account in actual practice?
- How can university education be enriched by World Heritage and its diversity?
Panel 1: Heritage and its Transformation in Time and Space
Panel 2: Politics and (In)Justice in Relation to World Heritage
Panel 3: Diversity of Heritage, Intangible Culture and Protection Strategies
Panel 4: Evolving Landscapes, Outstanding Universal Value and Sustainable Use
