The Centre for Global Heritage and Development has been admitted to the International Training Course on Heritage Impact Assessment, organized by The World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITRAP) in collaboration with the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and Tongji University (Shanghai). The training will be organized from October 17-28 in the World Heritage city of Vigan, the Philippines.
The course will provide knowledge and skills for using impact assessment as a tool for evaluating impacts from various factors affecting cultural and natural heritage.
In recent years the UNESCO World Heritage Committee has examined a considerable number of State of Conservation Reports related to threats from various types of large-scale development activities to the World Heritage properties. These activities include infrastructure development, new buildings, urban renewal and changes to the land use. Also threats from excessive tourism are considered. Many of these activities have had the potential to impact adversely on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), including integrity and authenticity of the properties inscribed on the World Heritage List. In order to evaluate satisfactorily the potential impacts, the World Heritage Committee has suggested the State Parties concerned to conduct Heritage Impact Assessments. Impact assessment has been a tool used in evaluating impacts by other sectors widely and the times has come to adapt it to suit the heritage sector.