FAC-AFRICA: First Aid to Cultural Heritage in Times of Crisis

Overview

Culture cannot wait.  Be it the rescue of the ancient manuscripts in besieged Timbuktu or the careful salvage of destroyed temples in the earthquake that struck the Kathmandu Valley, affected communities always strive to protect their cultural heritage following an emergency. 

Yet, where does one start, and who can help affected communities in recovering their heritage? Questions such as how and when to intervene in an unfolding humanitarian crisis continue to be problematic for national agencies tasked with both the humanitarian relief and at-scale recovery of cultural heritage.

The Training

First Aid for Cultural Heritage in Times of Crisis (FAC) emphasizes coordinated emergency preparedness and response for tangible and intangible cultural heritage. It is based on a field-tested three-step framework for providing first aid to cultural heritage, which can be adapted to any emergency context, be it the result of conflict or disaster, and is especially useful in planning at scale responses for securing and stabilizing different types of cultural heritage during complex emergency situations.

Developing a culture of preparedness, ongoing risk management, collaboration as well as coordination with mainstream emergency actors forms a core component of the training. The training identifies areas of joint programming between culture and humanitarian sectors to make certain that the affected communities participate in their own recovery.

The training is mostly hands-on. It aims to enhance participants’ skills for emergency management, crisis communication, and providing people-centered first aid for cultural heritage. Using the recent conflict in Mali as a central case study, this course will offer insights gained in recovering cultural heritage in tandem with humanitarian recovery. Participants will have the first-hand experience of interacting with communities engaged in recovery, reconstruction and peace building processes. The rich cultural and social context of Mali will provide participants with a unique opportunity to understand the complex and interminable links between people and heritage during crises.

Expected outcomes

At the end of the training, participants will be able to:

• Take action to develop coordination mechanisms between local cultural heritage institutions and agencies in-charge of managing emergencies;
• Analyse a given emergency situation, and identify actors as well as priorities for providing first aid for cultural heritage;
• Carry out on-site damage and risk assessments for cultural heritage in emergency situations;
• Secure, salvage and stabilize a variety of cultural materials and structures;
• Communicate successfully with the various emergency actors involved;
• Work in multi-disciplinary teams to provide first aid for cultural heritage;
• Improve emergency preparedness for cultural heritage in and beyond their respective institutions.

Who should apply?

• Professionals from the fields of cultural heritage (movable, immovable, tangible and intangible);
• Professionals responsible for disaster risk management, crisis response and emergency management (military, civil defence or civil protection);
• Those who have prior experience of working in an emergency situation or are responsible for protecting cultural heritage from disasters are especially encouraged to apply. Previous experience of, and/or ability to train others is desirable.

Maximum intake: 24, of which 19 selected from African countries (including 4 from Mali) and 5 from countries outside.