Dear reader,
You will receive this newsletter every quarter from now on. We inform you about developments in the field of international heritage cooperation in which the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE) is involved. Do you have any questions or suggestions? Please let us know.
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| |  | Jinna Smit, International Heritage Cooperation programme director | Photo: RCE |
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| | In January 2021, we started
the Programme for International Heritage Cooperation at the Cultural
Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE), to facilitate and encourage
professionals from around the world to learn from each other, jointly develop
knowledge and expertise and share their results. To enable this, we
experimented with new ways of working together. But how to work side by side
with international partners while the pandemic prevents travelling? In response
to this, we accelerated our efforts to continue and start exchanges online.
From these experiences, we learnt that even from afar, much can be accomplished
together. In view of climate change, this is a welcoming conclusion. Yet, in
2022, we aim for a combination of online and on site activities, depending on
the goal of the exchange. Also on behalf of our programme team, I would like to
thank our colleagues in the Netherlands and in our partner countries for their
commitment, flexibility and creativity. We look forward to continuing our joint
efforts and to make new connections!
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| | New waterfront developments in a historic setting, Recife (Brazil) | Photo: Thales Paiva |
| | | Between
11 and 15 October, an international online forum explored the challenges of sea
level rise in the urban area of Recife (Brazil) and the Netherlands. This event
marked the celebration of a 10-year partnership between the Federal University of Pernambuco and the
RCE, and was supported by the UN-HABITAT urban agenda. The main goal of the forum was to promote an
international debate on sea level rise in the city, in order to support
reflection and the design of innovative solutions regarding water management,
heritage conservation and urban sustainability. With speakers from across the
globe it offered a variety of examples of the potential of heritage in water
management. Following lectures and round tables, interdisciplinary workshops took
place that addressed the challenge of sea level rise in
both countries, resulting in an introspective “charter of Recife”: addressing
both regional government and future generations. It is a collective ambition to
host a follow-up event focused on a Dutch challenge next year. More information
about the Recife Exchanges can be found on the website below. Recordings of the
forum can be watched here. | |
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| | | Participants of an earlier training in 2019 | Photo: Ruben Smit, Reinwardt Academy |
| | The Indonesian Ministry of
Education and Culture (Kemendikbud), the Netherlands embassy in Jakarta,
Reinwardt Academy Amsterdam and the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands
(RCE) are collaborating in a multi-year Museum Management Capacity Building
Training. This program consists of several parts focused on different aspects
of museum management. Including, for example, collection and exhibition
management, and education and marketing. The main goals of this program are
knowledge exchange and capacity building. Aimed at young and mid-career museum professionals in Indonesia, most of the sessions in previous years took place in different locations across the country. The final two parts of this programme, focused on collection information
management and communication, and on preventive conservation and risk
management took place online at the beginning of this month. This decision was made necessary due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic.
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| | | Renovated section of the Dzierzgoń River, northern Poland (2015) | Photo: Polish Water |
| | | As
part of the Water Values: Connecting Past, Present & Future initiative, our programme intern Marcel Andrzejczak wrote an essay on water and
heritage in the Blue Paper series. The project is a collaborative effort
between ICOMOS, TU Delft and Rijksuniversiteit Groningen. It aims to highlight
the importance of heritage and cultural approaches to water-related challenges
through a series of short essays. In his text, “The future perspectives of the
Żuławy heritage waterscape”, Marcel focused on relaying the main themes and
findings of his research into the potential futures of the Żuławy Wiślane waterscape in northern Poland. Most of this research was conducted during a
five-month research internship at the RCE under the supervision of our
colleague Jean-Paul Corten. The research project culminated in an extensive
report and was supplemented by a week-long field excursion. The reflection Andrzejczak
wrote offers a condensed and accessible reflection on what he discovered about
this unique landscape’s water heritage during his internship. From its
fascinating history to current challenges and opportunities. Read his essay on this page. | |
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| | | Marcus Lodovicus Antonius Clifford, Adriana Wilhelmina Burlamacchi (1730) | Photo: Margareta Svensson |
| | | On 5 November our colleague Hanna Pennock gave a presentation during the
ICOM Portugal annual meeting. This event was focused on non-European
collections in museums. She presented two recent projects: the “Traces of
Slavery and Colonial History in the Museum Collection”, and a pilot project
related to provenance research about objects connected to colonial histories. An
article following this presentation will be published later on. Hanna Pennock
is a senior advisor at the department for monuments and collections. Watch a
recording of her presentation through the link below (starting at 1:07:42,
duration 20 minutes). | |
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| | | Sawaluntho, Indonesia | Photo: Historic Property and Museums of Sawahlunto (2015) |
| | | During this year’s History Month
in the Netherlands, we hosted a live online talk about
the past, present and potential future of the coal mining heritage of
Sawahlunto in Indonesia. Indonesian and Dutch heritage specialists and
historians addressed this topic from the perspective of international heritage
cooperation. The history of Sawahlunto is deeply intertwined with the Dutch
colonial past and is an example of technological progress, while also speaking of
the violence of Dutch colonial rule. Recently, UNESCO designated the Ombilin
mines as a World Heritage Site. | |
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| | | | Panel discussion led by Jinna Smit | Photo: YouTube/Zuid Afrika Huis |
| | | On 19 October, a mini-symposium and book presentation on South African
architectural heritage of Dutch origin took place simultaneously in the South Africa House in Amsterdam, in Pretoria
and Cape Town. The main results of many studies into the work of emigrated
Dutch architects from the period 1902-1961 were briefly presented. This
research was initiated by the University of Pretoria and carried out with the
support of the Embassy of the Netherlands in South Africa, the South African
Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA), the RCE, the South Africa House and
DutchCulture. RCE colleague Kees Somer, specialist in contemporary architecture, and
former colleague Marieke Kuipers contributed to the creation of the book. Did you miss this interesting event? You can watch the panel discussion and book presentation here. |
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| | | Aerial view of Diitabiki, Suriname (2020) | Photo: Wikimedia Commons |
| | | Do people from different cultures
and geographies look at topics surrounding heritage and nature in the same way
as we do in Europe? And how can one work together with and within potentially
different systems of knowledge? On 10 November, our colleague Arjen Kok engaged
with this topic during the monthly ICOMOS Netherlands lecture evening, in the
context of a specific ongoing project. A few years ago, the Aucan Maroon community in Diitabiki started working on a heritage preservation project,
which incorporates many aspects of the community's life and culture. Following
a request in 2015 by anthropologist Thomas Polimé, Arjen Kok has since been
supporting this initiative. If you would like to know more about this project,
and about how it approaches the relation between non-Western and Western
knowledge in relation to nature and heritage, go to this page. |
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| | | This is the newsletter of the
International Heritage Cooperation programme of the Cultural Heritage Agency of
the Netherlands. Our programme follows from the International Cultural Policy
Framework 2021-2024 of the Dutch government. Other organisations executing the
national International Heritage Cooperation programme are DutchCulture, the
National Archives of the Netherlands, KIEN and the Embassies of the Netherlands
in the partner countries. For more information on their activities, see their
respective websites.
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__Photo_Thales_Paiva_(3).jpg?v=20211206151013 "New waterfront developments in historic setting Recife (Brazil) Photo Thales Paiva")
.jpg?v=20211206144846 "Participants of an earlier training in Photo Ruben Smit Reinwardt Academy")
__Photo_Polish_Water_(2).jpg?v=20211206150920 "Renovated section of the Dzierzgon River northern Poland Photo Polish Water")
__Photo_M_Svensson_(2).jpg?v=20211206150141 "Marcus Lodovicus Antonius Clifford Adriana Wilhelmina Burlamacchi Photo Svensson")
_(3).jpg?v=20211206150114 "Sawaluntho Indonesia Photo Historic Propery and Museums of Sawahlunto")
.jpg?v=20211206150844 "Panel discussion led by Jinna Smit Photo YouTube Zuid Afrika Huis")
__Photo_Wikimedia_Commons_(2).jpg?v=20211206151236 "Aerial view of Diitabiki Suriname Photo Wikimedia Commons")
