Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU), Urban Research and Development Center (URDC) Executive Board Member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ege Uluca Tümer released a statement on the occasion of the International Day for Monuments and Sites. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tümer’s statement reads as follows:

 

 “This year’s theme for the annually celebrated 18 April, ICOMOS International Day for Monuments and Sites, is set as “International Day for Monuments and Sites 2024: Disasters & Conflicts Through the Lens of the Venice Charter”. The natural disasters and conflicts which have been occurring globally in the recent years, caused significant damage and losses to our cultural heritage sites. This has demonstrated to everyone engaged in this field how efforts to preserve monuments and sites, which have been our shared heritage for years, can become ineffectual during periods of disaster and conflict. Moreover, the evaluation of the provisions in the Venice Charter, prepared in 1964 and marking its 60th anniversary this year, regarded as a cornerstone in the history of conservation and binding for the 191 member countries of UNESCO, has also become part of the discussion in this context, regarding its capacity to manage such processes.

 

Within the scope of the 18 April 2024 ICOMOS ‘International Day for Monuments and Sites’, the members of ICOMOS and cultural heritage experts summoned to evaluate the development of preservation implementations since the Venice Charter; to analyze the global effects of the Venice Charter on preservation implementations; to discuss the expediency of this charter in terms of coping with difficulties arose from climate emergencies, conflicts and natural disasters; to organize various events critically approaching all the aspects of the 60th year theme of the Venice Charter and lastly, to collaborate.

 

Even though the monuments and sites in Cyprus have been significantly affected and endangered by disasters and conflicts, today, with the efforts of the UNDP Cyprus and ‘Cyprus Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage’, our collective cultural heritage is being made more resilient to all these adverse effects, preventing the disappearance of our historic monuments and sites. It is undoubtedly evident that the mentioned invaluable preservation endeavors, along with heightened sensitivity, foresight, and engagement from our society and institutions, have the potential to significantly enhance the resilience of our cultural heritage in the face of disasters and conflicts. However, especially due to the ongoing conflicts occurring in our region, we are aware that we cannot preserve heritage without protecting people. In this context, as the Urban Research and Development Center (URDC) operating under the body of Eastern Mediterranean University, we are collaborating with various institutions and organizations, continuing our endeavors towards setting a course in order to build capacity for ‘disaster and conflict resilient cultural heritage’. At the same time, with the ‘EMU Conservation and Restoration Master’s Program’, the only postgraduate program in the island in the field of conservation, we contribute raising conservation and restoration specialists for ensuring the preservation of our cultural heritage as well as transferring it to the next generations.”