April 16, 2007

The Cultural Heritage in Sustainable Development Thematic Group held the  first Dialogue on Culture in Sustainable Development. The event provided a forum to discuss how culture has been included in the development activities pursued by the Bank and its partners, sharing knowledge and experiences across task leaders and clients, and reviewing how to explore new opportunities and approaches such as the emerging sustainable tourism sector and its impact on local development and poverty reduction.

This full day event included plenary sessions on cultural heritage strategies in the Bank, approaches used by our partners, and three ways of looking at culture as: essential "glue" for identity and social cohesion; a powerful engine of growth; and a demand for heritage management. Parallel sessions debated 15 case studies from the Bank and other donors to understand alternative contexts and approaches, novelty in approaches, impact and value added -- including links with tourism, participation and ways to move forward.

The event was open by Giovanni Majnoni, Executive Director for Greece, Italy, Malta, and Portugal. Guests included academicians, directors of international organizations dealing with cultural heritage, Bank managers and Bank TTLs. The event was co-sponsored by several partners notably the Italian Government, USAID, UNESCO/WHC, World Economic Forum, and DevComm.

Introduction

Kristalina Georgieva, Acting Vice President, Sustainable Development Network, World Bank

Christian Delvoie, Sector Director, World Bank

Giovanni Majnoni, Executive Director, World Bank
The Role of the Italian Government in Promoting Culture

Culture Heritage Strategies

Chair: John Henry Stein, Sector Manager, World Bank

Hedi Larbi, Sector Manager, World Bank
Cultural Heritage and Development: A Framework for Action in the Middle East and North Africa

Maninder S. Gill, Sector Manager, World Bank
Cultural Assets in Support of Transition in the ECA region: An Operational Perspective

Marco Ferroni, Manager, Inter-American Development Bank
The IADB's Approach and Program in Culture and Development

Culture Heritage through the Lenses of Identity, Growth and Conservation

Chair: Orsalia Kalantzopoulos, Country Director and Regional Coordinator for Southeastern Europe, World Bank

Alain Godonou, Director of Ecole du Patrimoine Africain
Culture as a Tool for Identity, Social Cohesion and Development. The African Experience

Jonathan Tourtellot, National Geographic Society, Center for Sustainable Destinations
Geo-tourism: A Tool for Sustainable Tourism Development

Luca Zan, Professor, University of Bologna
Managing Cultural Heritage. Insights from the Italian Tradition

Culture and Identity: Case studies on community driven development, empowerment, conflict-resolution, social cohesion

Chair: Ephim Shluger, Cultural Heritage Specialist, World Bank

Presenters:

Katrinka Ebbe
Urban Heritage Conservation: The Case of Chongqing, China

Roberto Chavez
Systematic geographic approach to pro-poor tourism development, Peru

Culture and Growth: Case studies on local economic development, sustainable tourism, micro-credit

Chair: John Henry Stein, Sector Manager, World Bank

Presenters:

Rosanna Nitti
A Long-term Approach to Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Urban Development, Jordan

Isfandyar Khan and Jaehyang So
Walled City of Lahore - Cultural Heritage for Economic Development, Pakistan

Shaun Mann
Pro-Poor Tourism Development, Ethiopia

Culture and Conservation: Case studies on ecotourism, city centers, adaptive re-use, natural landscapes

Chair: Marina Galvani, Art Curator, World Bank

Presenters:

Anthony Bigio
Fes Medina Rehabilitation, Morocco

Roberta Hilbruner, USAID
Tourism and Wildlife Conservation, Namibia

Saha Dhevan Meyanathan
Managing the Sacred Urban Landscape in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Culture and Identity: Case studies on community driven development, empowerment, conflict-resolution, social cohesion

Chair: Reidar Kvam, Regional Safeguards Advisor, World Bank

Presenters:

Marina Djabbarzade
Community Development and Cultural Heritage Conservation, Macedonia

Arlene Fleming
Safeguarding Cultural Heritage During the Baku to Ceyhan Pipeline Project Europe and Central Asia: Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Global

Culture and Growth: Case studies on local economic development, sustainable tourism, micro-credit, community development

Chair: Pasquale Scandizzo, University of Rome

Presenters:

Ayse Kudat
Community Empowerment in Cultural Tourism and Heritage Protection in ECA, Georgia and Uzbekistan

Stefania Abakerli and Ricardo Agurcia, Copan Association
Copan Valley Sustainable Tourism and Cultural Heritage project: An Innovative Approach to Poverty Reduction and Local Development from Central America, Honduras

Culture and Conservation: Case studies on ecotourism, city centers, adaptive re-use, natural landscapes

Chair: Catherine Mathieu, Economist, World Bank

Presenters:

Emanuele Santi
Turning a Limitation into Opportunity: The Case of Conservation and Community-based Tourism in Butrint National Park, Albania

Terry Quan, Global Heritage Fund
Heritage Management for Economic Development

Closing Session

Chair: Emanuele Santi, Communications Officer, World Bank

Juan Luna, George Washington University
Wrap-up and highlights

Wilton Corkern, President, Accokeek Foundation
Next steps and key themes for cultural heritage and sustainable tourism