ICOMOS Climate Literacy Training and Tallinn Workshop for North European Historic Homes
Climate literacy training programme with open seminar for heritage professionals, places and communities takes place on 3.-6. December in Tallinn, Estonia and a Hybrid format. ICOMOS Climate Literacy Training for Heritage Professionals and Workshop targets North European heritage professionals, ICOMOS European partners, historic homes experts in Estonia. The special theme of these four days of the workshop is historic homes of Northern Europe in climate action.
4-day Programme Structure:
- Capacity: Up to 30 participants per session, open seminar for 100 persons
- Format: 4-day intensive programme (consists of separate modules that can be taken separately)
- Partners and workshop participants: ICOMOS Climate Action Working Group and ICOMOS Estonia in collaboration with ICOMOS Europe EPBD WG and ISCES; Ministry of Culture, Heritage Board of Estonia, Tallinn City Government, Estonian Academy of Arts
- Previous registration – ave.paulus@icomos.org for the workshop, registration link for the seminar will be provided at the end of October
Description of the modules:
MODULE 1 – TRAINING FOR 30 HERITAGE EXPERTS (in English)
3. December, Tallinn, Estonian Statehood House and Hybrid
ICOMOS Climate Literacy Foundational Training Module targeted for North Europe
ICOMOS Climate Literacy Training for Heritage Professionals (CLTH) builds on a resource designed by the ICOMOS Climate Action Working Group (CAWG) through the Preserving Legacies project funded by the National Geographic Society and aims to develop place- and cultural heritage-based climate adaptation actions, transforming conservation practice as a field to meet the challenges of the climate crisis.
The climate literacy training for heritage professionals addresses key topics identified as baseline competencies for heritage professionals in the ICOMOS Future of our Pasts Report (2019). These, in turn, reflect the key pillars of climate action outlined in the UNFCCC Paris Agreement (UNFCCC 2015). It is built around four cross-cutting themes. These are:
1. Climate Science and Impacts;
2. Carbon Footprints and Vulnerability;
3. Adaptation and Mitigation, and
4. Climate Justice and Equity.
The training uses regionally specific data and examples to assist participants and is delivered using an active and constructive pedagogical approach built around formal lectures and group discussions. Supporting material is provided before and after the training including ‘cheat sheets’ and guidance on key policy and more advanced reading.
CLTH provides participants with an understanding of humanity’s impact on the climate and guidance on effected responses. It represents a core adaptation strategy which boosts the adaptive capacity of communities and reduces climate risk. It explores the intersections between culture and climate, examining both how climate change impacts culture and how culture can contribute to climate action.
CLTH aims to build confidence and promote action by providing a foundational knowledge of key language, concepts and ways to respond. It is suitable for anyone working in the cultural heritage sector and assumes no prior knowledge of climate change. The content of the CLTH aligns with important international documents including the UNESCO Policy Document on Climate Action for World Heritage, the ICOMOS Future of our Pasts Report and the Global Research and Action Agenda from the ICOMOS-UNESCO-IPCC International Co-Sponsored Meeting on Culture, Heritage and Climate Change. CLTH supportS key climate change policy including the UNFCCC Paris Agreement and is a key step in achieving the targets of the Global Goal on Adaptation which calls on Parties to develop ‘adaptive strategies for preserving cultural practices and heritage sites and by designing climate-resilient infrastructure, guided by traditional knowledge, Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge and local knowledge systems’.
MODULE 2
4. December. Open seminar “Historic Homes of North Europe in Climate Action”
Tallinn Town Hall, maximum 80 people, synchronous translation to Estonian, hybrid seminar.
Seminar and workshop on climate solutions for historic buildings of Europe in collaboration with ICOMOS CAWG, ISCES and ICOMOS EPBD WG, Life Project Heritage Homes of Estonia, Ministry of Culture of Estonia, Heirtage Board of Estonia.
The public seminar serves as the participants’ contribution to the wider audience and region, centring on the themes of the workshop whilst bringing forward the competence and expertise of the participants. This component transforms the learning experience into knowledge sharing, allowing participants to present their findings, insights, and proposed solutions to local heritage professionals, community members, and stakeholders, democratising, empowering and deputising communities in the preservation of their heritage.
MODULE 3
5. December, workshop on UNESCO World Heritage site Old Town Tallinn. Applied community workshop. English, Estonian, with translation. No livestream.
The workshop creates a platform for dialogue between the international cohort of heritage professionals and the local Tallinn Old Town heritage communities, homeowners, and experts, fostering the exchange of best practices and collaborative approaches to climate adaptation, and embracing a plural knowledge approach based on the equitable and open sharing of knowledge and experience. Through this engagement, participants not only consolidate their learning but also contribute to building climate literacy within the broader heritage sector, ensuring that the knowledge gained during the intensive workshop modules reaches and benefits the wider regional heritage network.
MODULE 4, targeted for Estonian audience
6. December, workshop on wooden houses of Kalamaja, Tallinn. Workshop “Climate-Smart materials and methods in Estonian Traditional Architecture” In Estonian, possible English translation.
Sustainable renovation is a modern discipline that deals with the antique values of historical houses while also considering environmental values. In our seminar, we focus on the different connections we have to historic well-preserved houses with traditional materials, and also to modern ways of using traditional climate-friendly materials, and how to reuse old materials. We will have a seminar in a sustainable renovation centre in Kalamaja where architects, designers, heritage specialists, restorers and houseowners together are discussing best practices and then will visit some sites, fresh or under construction, where theyare using ecological materials or are reusing old materials and building elements.
Registration to the workshop participation and further information will be available soon
Among the organisers and speakers are Ave Paulus, Riin Alatalu, William Megarry, Andrew Potts, David Hughes, Robert Woodside, Boris Dubovik, Tarmo Elvisto, and others. The list of speakers, organisers and supporters will be finalised by 24.11. In the case of interest in joining us, please write latest 10.11.2024 to ave.paulus@icomos.org
Contact: Ave Paulus, ave.paulus@icomos.org
