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The spring plenary meeting of the European Heritage Alliance with representatives of 21 member organisations, and with the new European Heritage Hub project and the European data space for cultural heritage were the main topics on the agenda.<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
Europa Nostra writes:<\/p>\n
The spring plenary meeting of the\u00a0European Heritage Alliance\u00a0took place on 20 March, counting with the attendance of representatives of 21 member organisations. The meeting was hosted by the European Travel Commission in the historic heart of Brussels, Belgium, being the first time the Alliance was able to gather in person since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The new\u00a0European Heritage Hub\u00a0project and the\u00a0European data space for cultural heritage\u00a0were the main topics on the agenda.<\/p>\n
Lilian Grootswagers, Advisory Board President of Future for Religious Heritage and current Alliance Rotating Chair, moderated the discussion, which featured key policy developments and new initiatives from the member organisations.\u00a0\u00a0Alejandro Ramilo, Project Adviser and Coordinator at the European Education and Culture Executive Agency at the European Commission, joined as special guest.<\/p>\n
Sne\u0161ka Quaedvlieg-Mihailovic,\u00a0Secretary General of Europa Nostra,\u00a0\u00a0kicked off the meeting with the first presentation of the\u00a0E<\/a>uropean Heritage Hub, an EU funded two-year pilot project run by Europa Nostra and a group of valuable partners, including\u00a0the Europeana Foundation, Eurocities, ICLEI and KU Leuven. The European Heritage Hub responds to the need to set up a permanent advocacy and knowledge heritage platform including all relevant actors. In her closing remarks, the Secretary General of Europa Nostra insisted on the collaborative nature of the hub, inviting all members of the Alliance to engage as much as possible.<\/p>\n Digitalisation was also at the top of the agenda.\u00a0Harry Verwayen, General Director of Europeana,\u00a0Corinne Szteinsznaider, Coordinator of Michael Culture, and\u00a0Marco Rendina, Managing Director of the European Fashion Heritage Association, delivered a joint presentation on the common\u00a0European data space for cultural heritage, the new flagship initiative of the European Commission to accelerate the digital transformation of Europe\u2019s cultural sector, and supporting projects.<\/p>\n As another major priority for the European cultural heritage field, climate action was front and centre throughout the meeting.\u00a0Ruth Schagemann, President of the Architects\u2019 Council of Europe (ACE), gave an overview of the\u00a0Dav<\/a>os Baukultur Alliance 2023. Hosted by the World Economic Forum, the Baukultur Alliance unites public and private sector stakeholders to improve the quality and culture of our living environments. Also on behalf of the ACE,\u00a0Pierre Obajtek, Senior Policy Officer, gave a presentation on the EU\u2019s\u00a0New European Bauhaus Initiative.\u00a0Sne\u0161ka Quaedvlieg-Mihailovic, also as Regional Co-Chair of the Climate Heritage Network for Europe, gave an update on the Heritage Movement for Climate Action Europe.<\/p>\n The Alliance also heard from\u00a0Bruno Rossignol, Head of Programme for Climate and Heritage of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Institute. EIB Institute is the first Associate Partner of the Alliance, having joined in December 2022. Other interventions included the conclusion of the peer-learning project\u00a0\u00a0C<\/a>ultural Heritage in Action, by\u00a0Julie Herve, Head of Culture at Eurocities.\u00a0Corinne Szteinsznaider, Coordinator of Michael Culture, gave an update on the\u00a0EU Action Plan against trafficking in Cultural Goods.<\/p>\n Last but not least,\u00a0Piet Jaspaert, Vice-President of Europa Nostra, presented the latest developments regarding the European Chemicals Agency\u2019s plan to include lead in the list of substances subject to authorisation (Appendix XIV of the\u00a0REACH Regulation). In the Spring meeting 2022, the Alliance endorsed\u00a0the\u00a0joint statement on the regulation\u00a0published by ICOMOS, ICOM and E.C.C.O, calling to\u00a0exclude the use of lead in the fabrication, conservation and restoration of stained glass and other cultural goods from the European Chemicals Agency\u2019s proposed ban.<\/p>\n The meetings and activities of the European Heritage Alliance are organised in the frame of Europa Nostra\u2019s Network project\u00a0European Cultural Heritage Agora\u00a0\u201cEmpowering Europe\u2019s Civil Society Movement for Heritage\u201d (2022-2024), which is co-funded by the\u00a0Creative Europe\u00a0programme of the European Union. The Alliance holds two plenary meetings per year. The next encounter should take place in Autumn 2023, with the exact date still to be defined.<\/p>\n