UNESCO Consultation Document © University College London
UNESCO CONSULTATION
Location: Asmara Eritrea
Collaborators: Asmara Heritage Project, University College London
[ URBAN DESIGN / INFRASTRUCTURE / EDUCATION / CIVIC ]
[ 2001 ]
This public engagement exercise was carried out by the Asmara Heritage Project (AHP) and staff and students of University College London, UCL, it built on two decades of work aimed at researching, safeguarding and promoting Asmara’s outstanding urban heritage. This collaborative and award-winning research has resulted in many different outputs, culminating in Asmara’s inscription on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 2017. The AHP, as the office responsible for managing the World Heritage Site, is currently drafting the Conservation Management Plan (CMP), an important component of which is the Stakeholder Engagement Plan. With limited resources, the AHP has not been able to undertake any substantial public engagement activities to date. UCL offered to support the AHP and to learn from their experiences managing such a large and complex urban site.
This collaborative exercise won a grant from the BSA’s Architecture Project Fund (APF). UCL students and AHP staff were divided into five groups and stationed at 10 specially selected sites across the city. They asked members of the public a series of questions designed to elicit specific responses, as much as to encourage meaningful conversations about the city’s past, present and future, and to highlight the value of citizen contributions. The exercise had four primary aims:
To gather information about public opinion for the AHP;
To increase awareness among the public of the UNESCO process;
To provide experience and build confidence for students and build capacity among AHP staff in public engagement activities;
To highlight the value and importance of citizen participation.
The report summarised the experiences and findings from the exercise.