Do World Heritage Sites matter in the 21st century? An event at the Venice Architecture Biennale

We are delighted to be co-hosting a discussion at UNESCO by Bartlett School of Architecture and Donald Insall Associates at the Venice Architecture Biennale.

How does a city like Venice preserve its UNESCO World Heritage status and, at the same time, evolve into a thriving contemporary working community, not just for tourists but for its own inhabitants? Are there similarities between Venice and other cities in the world in terms of the challenges and opportunities afforded by their World Heritage status? Do historic cities engender collective well-being? What makes for good conservation without commodifying heritage into something sterile? How do you assess the value of heritage? How does Venice ’s heritage lend itself to being a Freespace?

Who?
Chaired by Prof. Alan Penn Dean of Faculty, The Bartlett School of Architecture with a panel including:

• Francesco Bandarin, UNESCO Advisor for Heritage, Former Assistant Director-General for Culture, UNESCO and Director of UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Prof. of Urban Planning and Conservation at the University IUAV of Venice
• Marino Folin, Architect, Prof. of Town Planning and Former Rector at the University IUAV of Venice, Curator of Italian Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale (1996), Member of the General Council of the Cariverona Foundation
• Tanvir Hasan, Architect and Deputy Chairman of Donald Insall Associates (London), UK’s leading conservation architecture practice celebrating its 60th anniversary this year with a continued interest in bringing historic buildings to life
• Eric Parry, Architect and Founder of Eric Parry Architects (London), Royal Academician (RA), working with listed buildings and historically sensitive sites with a reputation for beautifully crafted and well-considered projects
• Wang Shu, Architect and Founder of Amateur Architecture Studio (China) with partner and wife Lu Wenyu was made Pritzker Prize Laureate in 2012 on the back of a body of work that presents a contemporary approach acknowledging the rich tradition of Chinese architecture