Context 156 - September 2018

C O N T E X T 1 5 6 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 8 29 IHBC ANNUAL SCHOOL region that has been savaged by war.The conflict of the Yugoslav Wars (1991–2001) left a great deal of physical damage, and underlying tensions remain. Shepherd noted the connection between lost heritage and loss of identity, highlight- ing that a great deal of poor-quality facsimile rebuilding had taken place. During the Kosovo War of Independence the number of traditional tower houses ( kulla ) was reduced from 2,000 to 200. Locals are striving to restore them, although with inadequate knowledge and skills. The talk focused primarily on Cultural Heritage without Borders’ work in Albania, where Mamani was born. She emphasised that the goals were to aid social recovery through improving people’s economic situation and providing opportunity in the community. Negotiation with owners, governments and local people to promote involvement was crucial to the projects. Cultural Heritage without Borders’ restoration of the monuments of Babamento House, Gjirokastra, saw a three-year period of negotiation convincing a large group of owners to support the project, which had resulted in the formation of a successful hostel and cultural centre in the building. Another case study was Spac Prison, which was a communist prison for 50 years, before being opened up in 2014. Made a second- category national monument, it survived as a reminder of this period of Albania’s history. Another contentious example was that of the prisons and mine at Spac, where critics of the communist regime were held, which helped to highlight the conflicting narratives which the heritage of post-conflict zones could present, and the challenges of communicating their importance as aspects of local history. In 2007 Cultural Heritage without Borders established two-week educational programmes for young professionals interested in learn- ing traditional crafts. These were now held in multiple locations throughout the year, attracting young people from across Albania. Mamani said that central to this learning process was bringing older craftspeople to share their knowledge with the young. Her slide showing ‘Uncle Spiro’ teaching one student about stone cobbling showed the importance of this practical engagement. In particular, the talk conveyed the importance of engagement and education, allowing the young to access their cultural heritage. Cultural Heritage without Borders’ work with children combines general interest in history and heritage with awareness of the importance of physically protecting and repairing buildings. Rosemary Thornber and Rory Lamb Transforming professional engagement with communities Keynote speaker: Jukka Jokilehto The annual school’s theme this year, ‘Shared Heritage’, naturally makes us think about how communities, whether they are small or large, value their heritage. Jukka Jokilehto began his talk by establishing that people needed to be more aware of the heritage they had and how to take care of it. This included visibly important buildings but also what we might not necessarily consider important. He suggested that these less important build- ings might even be more significant because they showed how the community lived their day-to-day lives. This is when he brought up the notion of intangible heritage and how everything humans made had an intangible dimension. Three government-established systems Jokilehto first discussed were the Carta di Gubbio (1960), the Loi Malraux (1962) and Elena Mamani: cobbling with Uncle Spiro Jukka Jokilehto: the community will decide.