Workshop I – Underwater Cultural Heritage and maritime landscapes: EU policies and strategies in the Mediterranean

Module 2- The protection of cultural landscapes in the Euro-Mediterranean region: maritime landscapes (3h)

Trainer: Sónia Bombico (CIDEHUS & MED – University of Évora)

Module description:

The first application of the specific concept of a maritime cultural landscape dates to the middle of the 1970s. Maritime cultural landscape is multi-layered; it includes any hermeneutic kind of human relationship to the sea. For obvious reasons, they are of great importance in the Mediterranean.

The Mediterranean Landscape Charter (Sevilla Charter, 1993) was the first document to cover specific issues about the management and protection of Mediterranean landscapes, highlighting the need to protect their natural and cultural heritage.

A few years later, the European Landscape Convention (ELC) (Council of Europe, 2000) becomes the first international treaty devoted exclusively to all dimensions of the landscape, with a view to sustainable development. The Convention applies to the entire territory and includes land, inland water and marine areas. According to the Convention “the landscape contributes to the formation of local cultures and that it is a basic component of the European natural and cultural heritage, contributing to human well-being and consolidation of the European identity”. This statement is equally applicable to the Mediterranean region.

UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee defines cultural landscapes as geographical areas “representing the combined work of nature and man”. UNESCO plays an important role in the protection of seascapes through the World Heritage Marine Programme, focusing on the impacts of a changing ocean. Maritime cultural landscapes are particularly at risk following the impacts of climate change and rising sea levels.

In the last decades several projects, financed by European funds, have been dedicated to the development of models of evaluation and sustainable management of maritime cultural landscapes. The current Bauhaus of the Seas project stands out. The vision of the project is to demonstrate and archive solutions for climate neutrality with a particular focus on coastal cities.

This workshop will help to better understand EU policies on maritime cultural landscapes by analysing good practices and reflecting on challenges for the future.

Learning objectives:

• Introduce the concept of cultural landscape, in particular that of maritime cultural landscape;
• Discussing EU policies for the protection of maritime cultural landscapes;
• Presenting case studies and good practices in the preservation of maritime cultural landscapes in the Mediterranean;
• Discuss the sustainability of coastal heritage and cultural seascapes in the face of climate change in the Mediterranean.

Workshop Format: Expository session and interactive class, group discussion in the classroom on previously suggested readings, research and exploration of online information.