Sophie Starrenburg organises workshop on climate change and cultural heritage
On 11 April 2024, Sophie Starrenburg, Assistant Professor at the Grotius Centre for International Legal Studies, organised a workshop on ‘Climate Change and Cultural Heritage: Moving from Heritage Loss to Reparation’ at Tilburg Law School.
In recent years, it has become clear that the connections between cultural heritage and climate change cannot be ignored. Across the globe, climate threats are no longer a mere ‘possibility’; climate change is already deeply affecting enjoyment of cultural heritage among countless communities.
During the workshop, participants reflected on how cultural heritage law and governance frame respond (or indeed fail to respond) to the concept of heritage loss within the context of climate change. Participants also explored how heritage law and governance can provide a horizon of reparation for states or communities affected by climate-induced heritage loss, placing these initiatives within the broader politics of reparation for historical injustices such as colonialism.
Workshop participants came from a wide range of fields, including archaeology, anthropology, critical heritage studies, history, law and legal geography. The types of cultural heritage covered during the workshop were similarly wide-ranging, with presentations focusing on intangible cultural heritage, cultural landscapes, monuments, archaeology and the museum sector.
The workshop was sponsored by Tilburg Law School as part of a research week organised by the ‘Constitutionalising in the Anthropocene’ research group.