UNESCO World Heritage conference starts in Maho

MAHO–St. Maarten is currently hosting this year’s United Nations Educational Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) meeting on Capacity Building and Heritage Conservation in the Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

Regional and international participants are using the opportunity to strengthen professional capacities for the effective implementation of the 1972 World Heritage Convention in the SIDS with a view to increasing the representation of sites on the World Heritage list.

The meeting has been organised by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Affairs in collaboration with the World Heritage Centre and UNESCO offices in Kingston and Havana.

The conference started at the Sonesta Maho Convention Centre on Thursday and will continue through to May 13. It consists of two parts: a meeting on Eastern Caribbean Coastal Fortifications May 8-10, and a meeting on Caribbean Capacity Building Strategy May 11-13.

A total of 22 Caribbean states are attending the conference, as well as other heritage stakeholders from St. Maarten/St. Martin and the Netherlands. Some representatives were present for the initial meeting and the rest will join for the second part of the conference.

The opening event on Thursday morning was hosted by St. Maarten National Commission for UNESCO Secretary-General Marcellia Henry, who is acting as chairperson for the initial session on Eastern Caribbean Coastal Fortification.

Welcoming words were given by Ministry of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Affairs Secretary-General Jorien Wuite; Culture Department head Neville York who made the event possible; and UNESCO World Heritage Centre Programme Specialist Alessandro Balsamo.

Wuite highlighted the importance of protecting cultural heritage and highlighted a sensitisation and awareness movement taking place both globally and regionally.

York addressed the “excellent window of opportunity” UNESCO offers, hoping that St. Maarten and other SIDS members would be able to take advantage of the sustainable development possibilities partially made possible by funding and technology.

Balsamo said that the more little treasures are known, the more the organisation would be able to contribute to development.

Three experts on heritage brought in for the conference – ICOFORT President Milagros Flores Roman of Puerto Rico; maritime and colonial history specialist Geoffrey Ward of Barbados; and Barbados Museum and Historical Society director Alissandra Cummins – introduced themselves to participants and clarified the type of work they do.

ICOFORT specialises in fortification and military heritage, and Roman, who will share her expertise in the area, said the SIDS were seriously underrepresented in the field. Ward will use his time to focus on the historical context and Cummins will focus on people and culture, migration and interaction. She said it was essential to preserve intangible heritage and it was shame of the past that limited current knowledge, while knowledge was needed to liberate people from the past.

Participants also introduced themselves individually and all attendees were given a chance to state what they personally hoped to gain from the conference. Many participants hope to obtain clarity and vision, to gain expertise and inspiration, and to see what practically can be done afterwards.

The networking potential was highlighted and some members stressed how important a network and knowledge base would be to move forward and go through with projects and the nomination processes. There also were a few observers who were not aiming for nominations, but were interested in the topics and had come to gain more exposure.

The matter of perspective also was discussed briefly, as participants pointed out that community members might not value or recognise cultural heritage. One example of a change of perspective was given by the St. Vincent representative, who said he had not realised there was something special about the country’s inward facing forts along the coast until he learned more about history.