The International Conference on Cultural Heritage (CH) brings together researchers, policy makers, professionals and practitioners to explore some of the more pressing issues concerning cultural heritage today. In particular, the main goal of the conference is to focus on interdisciplinary and multi-disciplinary research on tangible and intangible Cultural Heritage, the use of cutting edge technologies for the protection, restoration, preservation, massive digitalization, documentation and presentation of the CH content. At the same time, the event is intended to cover topics of research ready for exploitation, demonstrating the acceptability of new sustainable approaches and new technologies by the user community, SME’s, owners, managers and conservators of cultural patrimony.
Several organizations have decided to join together in order to create an optimal environment for the discussion, explanation of new technologies, exchange of modern ideas and in general to allow the transfer of knowledge between a maximum number of professionals and participants during one common time period.
Its main objectives are further to:
- Highlight the role of European cultural heritage research and developments within international activities and co-operation.
- Assess the impact of EU policies on the protection, restoration, preservation and digitalisation (e-documentation) of European CH and evaluate the positive contribution of cultural heritage innovative research and developments for competitiveness and job creation.
- Disseminate the results of EU cultural heritage innovative research and developments acquired at large research facilities and discuss new development and innovations in research infrastructure.
- Discuss and consolidate co-ordination of national research into and educational programmes for CH within Europe and the world.
- Refine, amend and publish main ideas and visions of any technological platforms opened to the entire field of CH in the context of preparation of the EU Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (2014-2020).
- Emphasize the relation of conservation practice to contemporary legislation, especially experienced by SMEs, problems of orphan works, fraud and crime regarding movable cultural heritage market; health and safety issues in conservation practice.
- Discuss the influence of research on the impact of EU policies and directives on CH, and mitigation of possible adverse effects.
- Underline and discuss the role of the current and future developments on international activities, agreements and co-operations:
- against demolishing and/or looting in CH (UNESCO, Interpol, Europol, ICOMOS, ICCROM, etc).
- on the e-documentation and e-preservation in CH (Google, UNESCO, World Library, mSoft, etc);
- on the establishment of standards in the field of CH;
- on conventions (like the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible CH; EU CH Label, WHL, etc);
- on monitoring, protecting and presenting worldwide the CH using innovative ICT solutions;
- on the legal and ethical responsibilities of CH Informatics.
In total 501 papers from 62 countries of the world were submitted.