Cultural Heritage in the Eastern Mediterranean

The cultural heritage in the eastern Mediterranean is among the richest in the world, yet also among the most fragile. Tourism continues to grow quickly in the region, and the potential is immense, however facilities and attractions would benefit hugely from upgrading. From the Old City of Jerusalem and Roman ruins in Palestine, to Syrian crusader castles and Egyptian temples, authorities are working hard to create safe modern facilities, visitor centres and modern standards, and there should be opportunities here for UK architects and other specialists. This meeting will take a look at the potential opportunities and examine some case studies.

Speakers include:

• Shadia Touqan, Technical Office Director, Old City of Jerusalem Revitalisation Programme
• Roddy Langmuir, Edward Cullinan Architects – working in Petra, Syria and Libya
• Nasser Golzari, Golzari NG Architects and The University of Westminster – Regeneration of Historic Centres in the West Bank.
• Christiane Dabdoub Nasser, Regional Monitoring & Support Unit, Euromed Heritage, Brussels.

We are delighted that Christiane Dabdoub from Euromed Heritage, part of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) for Mediterranean countries, will travel from Brussels to join this event. Christiane is leading the support team for Euromed Heritage 4. This is a 17m Euro EU programme to facilitate the appropriation by people of their own national and regional cultural legacy through easier access to education and knowledge on cultural heritage. The programme is funding many cultural heritage projects in the southern and eastern Mediterranean.