CCI Newsletter, No. 31, June 2003

Preventive Conservation Summer School

by Gisele Thomson, Learning and Development Officer, Conservation and Scientific Services

In June 2003, CCI will welcome about 25 people from Canada and abroad to picturesque Ottawa for a 3-week intensive experience in preventive conservation. During the course, participants will share ideas and perspectives and, in the process, link into a worldwide network.

This pilot course, Preventive Conservation: From Current Issues to Common Strategies, is a collaborative endeavour between CCI and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM). The purpose of the course is to reexamine how and what decisions are made when developing and implementing preventive conservation. Recent research and decision-making processes will be explored mainly through innovative and interactive approaches.

Four threads fashion the weave of this course: risk management and decision making; methods of communication and implementation relevant to local and national communities; emerging and missing knowledge; and, ultimately, integration of new information from the dialogue with colleagues and within heritage organizations. The exchange of knowledge and perspectives in the classroom and at social events will provide an exceptional opportunity to meet new people and discuss new ideas.

This course is shaping up to be an intriguing learning event. We look forward to telling you about it in a future edition of the CCI Newsletter.