via UNESCO, 13 November 2023: UNESCO, in collaboration with the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, held a workshop in Siem Reap focused on Emergency Preparedness and Underwater Cultural Heritage (UCH) in Southeast Asia. The event, supported by the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund, brought together policymakers and heritage professionals from multiple countries to discuss the challenges, notably climate change, affecting UCH in the region. The workshop emphasized the need for enhanced policy frameworks, capacity building, and regional cooperation to protect this heritage. Participants reviewed a roadmap with 16 actionable recommendations for integrating UCH into disaster risk reduction plans and engaged in knowledge exchange on conserving waterlogged wooden artifacts and managing UCH sites sustainably.
UNESCO and the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts organized a Workshop on Emergency Preparedness and Underwater Cultural Heritage in Southeast Asia from 25-28 October 2023 in Siem Reap, Cambodia, with the support of the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund (HEF) and the UNESCO Secretariat of the 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage.
The event was attended by 61 policymakers, heritage professionals, and underwater cultural heritage practitioners from Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Viet Nam, and benefitted from the experience and expertise of experts from Australia, Guam, Hungary, and Japan.
Presided by Mr. Sardar Umar Alam, UNESCO Representative to Cambodia, and H.E. Prak Sonnara, Secretary of State of the Cambodian Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, the workshop provided a platform for regional dialogue on current challenges affecting underwater cultural heritage in Southeast Asia notably related to natural and human-induced hazards and climate change and strengthened cooperation and knowledge exchange between professionals of the region.
