STRENgthening resilience of Cultural Heritage at risk in a changing environment through proactive transnational cooperation

The aim of this paper is to identify user needs in the field of protection and management of cultural heritage at risk from extreme climate events through an online survey.

This work is a first step focusing on the analysis of methods, tools and databases to be integrated into the existing ProteCHt2save Web GIS Tool for risk mapping. The aim is to homogenise the heritage at risk management data from previous projects selected for the inventory. Section 2 provides an overview of the results with an analysis of the STRENCH activities in which they could be activated. Section 3 presents the main features of the ProteCHt2save Web GIS Tool for risk mapping. Section 4 shows which results from previous projects are suitable for the integration and improvement of the Web GIS Tool. Furthermore, section 5 presents the methodology to homogenise the data collected at different spatial scales (local/regional/national/international) for each country/region involved in STRENCH.

This paper deals with the vulnerability assessment of selected categories of cultural heritage to climate change induced extreme events. Section 2 presents the proposed methodology and conceptual model for vulnerability assessment. Section 3 describes the requirements and criteria for determining the vulnerability of cultural landscapes, destroyed villages and parks and gardens. Section 4 presents the main vulnerability indicators that allow an assessment of the vulnerability to flash floods, landslides, storms and fires for the selected cultural heritage typologies. Finally, section 5 explains how to assess the indicators and how to aggregate them into a vulnerability index needed for a vulnerability assessment.

The ‘Risk Mapping Tool for Cultural Heritage Protection’ was originally developed and implemented within the Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE project ProteCHt2save. The Web GIS Tool was developed with the aim to interactively visualise risk maps of Central Europe with high spatial resolution.

An updated version of the Web GIS Tool is being developed within the STRENCH project. In this context, the Web GIS Tool will be specifically adapted and extended to provide ready-to-use solutions, such as climate hazard maps and a methodology to classify the vulnerability of cultural heritage, including landscape aspects.

In particular, the redesigned risk mapping Web GIS Tool will contribute to Sendai Priority 4 (Improve Disaster Risk Reduction and "Build Back Better") by providing climate hazard maps generated by satellite services, an action-oriented database on cultural heritage criticality, and intervention priorities to strengthen resilience to disasters.

In particular, the use of Copernicus services and their integration into the Web GIS Tool represents a remarkable innovation that will have an immediate impact on the management of natural and cultural heritage sites and can potentially be extended to new sectors threatened by climate change.

The report "Finalization of the Web GIS Tool for Decision making in the Management of Heritage at Risk" illustrates the results of the activities carried out in STRENCH and describes the updated and final version of the Web GIS Tool, including information on the new STRENCH case studies and new mapping tools for visualising climate maps and downloading data. In addition, the vulnerability rate has been added to the Web GIS Tool.

The document 'Tutorial Development for User friendly Transfer of the Web GIS Tool' aims to guide end-users through the navigation of the Web GIS Tool and explain how to access and use the main tools.

This document provides an overview of the physical and administrative aspects of the vulnerability of specific categories of cultural landscapes (e.g. terraced coastal landscapes, mountain villages, parks and gardens) to selected hazards. It should be emphasised that cultural landscapes may also contain built heritage property that is vulnerable to hazards. As these objects have already been analysed within ProteCHt2save, they are not considered here.

This document outlines proposals for improving management strategies at each pilot site in the project partner countries, with particular attention to the possible integration of results from previous projects activated under STRENCH. The proposals are developed taking into account their feasibility in the context of the selected case studies, with a view to further developing them for systematic implementation in risk reduction plans at local level.

"Testing of the Web GIS Tool for Landscape Protection" reports on the evaluation of the strengths and critical points of the applicability of the Web GIS Tool. It presents the results of the case studies conducted during the testing of the Web GIS Tool in cultural landscapes or historic parks in the Emilia Romagna region (IT), the Wachau region (AT), the Lake Balaton region (HU) and the Vipava valley (SI).

The Austrian report describes the case study carried out in the Wachau region to test the Web GIS Tool.

This document contains a report on the strengths and weaknesses of the applicability of the Web GIS tool. The tests were carried out in villages located in vulnerable mountain areas in the district of Praha - Troja (CZ), in the district of Forchheim (DE) and in the Split-Dalmatia region (HR).

The aim of the report 'Awareness raising Events for Fostering transnational Cooperation in Disaster Risk Reduction' is to report on the awareness raising events organised at local level in the project partner countries to strengthen proactive cooperation between the different actors and levels in the decision-making process for the protection of cultural heritage at risk.

It contains short reports on the seven awareness-raising events held, with a description of the issues addressed and the actors involved, the problems identified during the event in the management of cultural heritage at local level, the strategies or measures that could be implemented to address these problems, and finally some comments on how to improve the "upstream" process in national policies.

The report 'Awareness raising Event for Fostering transnational Cooperation in Disaster Risk Reduction - Austria' provides more details on the awareness raising event held in Austria (online).

The analysis of the possible integration of risk management strategies into national and European policies developed by Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria and Hungary focuses on the following issues

1. extreme events such as landslides, fires, storms and floods.
2. specific categories of cultural heritage analysed, including cultural landscapes (terraced and/or coastal landscapes), destroyed settlements (rural and mountain villages) and historic parks (parks and gardens).

The report also provides a set of recommendations for the development and implementation of action plans in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

online, 10.6.2021

The STRENCH conference brought together leading experts on climate modelling, climate-related threats to cultural and natural heritage, vulnerability assessment and critical issues for cultural heritage protection, and the use of 21st century technologies to prioritise actions and prepare disaster response mechanisms for cultural heritage protection.

online, 24.2.2022

The conference focused on presenting the results of the STRENCH project, which aims to improve cooperation and exchange of expertise between the different actors involved in the decision-making process for the protection and conservation of cultural heritage at risk from climate change-related extreme events. The conference was held in English and was attended by 73 participants.

online, 28.9.-9.10.2020

The first week of the Summer School provided participants with an introduction to cultural heritage and its protection. The second week focused on the impact of climate change on cultural heritage and vulnerability analysis using climate models. Through lectures by international experts and practical exercises based on case studies, the Summer School participants gained a deep insight into the topic.

online, 7.-11.6.2021

The one-week programme focused on the challenges of climate change for landscapes and historic parks, vulnerability assessments and preventive conservation measures for natural and cultural heritage, and risk management and conservation strategies for cultural heritage.

Krems hybrid, 2.11.2020

The Local Working Tables were an important tool for disseminating the results of the STRENCH project and, in particular, for gathering valuable insights, feedback and general expertise. They were held in all partner countries and brought together heritage experts on two occasions during the project.

The first Working Table in Austria was attended by experts and partners who participated in presentations and discussions on raising awareness for accessible and sustainable cultural heritage protection through the development of online tools and early warning systems.

online, 8.2.2022

The second Working Table in Austria aimed to bring together stakeholders from different levels and professions to share and discuss developments, tools and opportunities that can contribute to the sustainable implementation of cultural heritage protection and to promote knowledge transfer between all stakeholders on cultural heritage management and protection strategies.