Space Technologies for Heritage: Two case studies

Abstract

Contemporary global challenges such as climate change, natural disasters, deforestation, overexploitation of natural resources, pollution and urbanization, among others, are complicating efforts for the protection of World Heritage sites. Ensuring sustainable development of these sites therefore requires improvements in our approaches to monitor and manage these valuable places. In this context, space technologies provide monitoring capabilities that allow World Heritage management authorities access to timely, objective and accurate information, enabling them to promptly assess risk and devise an appropriate response to mitigate them. To facilitate adoption of space technology for World Heritage monitoring, the International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST), a category-II Center under the auspices of UNESCO, was officially established by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in July 2011, following the decision of UNESCO’s General Conference at its 35th session in 2009.