The European Cultural Heritage Skills Alliance CHARTER (Cultural Heritage Actions to Refine Training, Education and Roles), has been launched, an Erasmus+ project taking place from January 2021 until December 2024, and with a Consortium of 21 full members that includes ICOMOS and its International Scientific Committee CIF (International Scientific Commitee on Training), with 7 affiliate partners and 19 associate members from 14 EU states.
… combine newly gathered knowledge of sector specific competencies and skills…
… The Alliance will map the needs of the CH sector…
European Cultural Heritage Skills Alliance writes:
The project stems from the lack of statistical recognition of the cultural heritage (CH) sector. Without this, the economic impact of the sector goes unnoticed and consequently, the sector’s potential to strengthen European cultural identities and social cohesion cannot be realised. The initiative Cultural Heritage Actions to Refine Training, Education and Roles (CHARTER) will combine newly gathered knowledge of sector specific competencies and skills with already existing findings and recommendations to streamline a novel strategic approach to sectoral cooperation.
What to expect from CHARTER?
The Alliance will map the needs of the CH sector to identify skills shortages and mismatches in order to develop fitting training programmes for already active CH professionals. The Alliance will also support adaptability within the educational system, with the aim that curricula and learning goals reflect the current and coming needs of the sector. Upskilling of core and transversal skills will be made easy and exchange, capacity building and movement within Europe will be encouraged. All efforts combined will professionalise the sector and CHARTER will showcase that CH is integral in achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability. Furthermore, CHARTER will carry out regional pilots to validate new approaches based on research findings. It will analyse sectoral dynamics and map stakeholders. It will also propose task descriptors for occupational and economic frameworks to streamline the European CH job market.
Attending to the needs and challenges of the sector
CHARTER will see to the entire European CH sector and the different levels found within it. By coming together, the sector as a whole will become stronger and more resilient. The absence of classification and codification leaves CH recruitment and procurement without competency benchmarks. There is no structure for continuing professional development to aid lifelong learning, nor a system for identifying and addressing emerging skills gaps. Many professionals do not have their full range of competencies recognised, which hinders professional mobility. A recognised ‘age cliff’ and trend towards academisation of society is reducing entrant numbers to cultural heritage occupations. Digitisation, increased use of technology and born-digital cultural heritage are creating challenges for an ageing and poorly resourced sector.
By mapping education through formal, informal and lifelong learning pathways, systems of recognition, validation and accreditation for heritage skills will be created. CHARTER will clarify roles and missions in regards to cultural heritage so that career pathways are visible for educators and training providers to tailor and benchmark curriculum content and delivery methods.
Digitisation, 3D modelling, virtual and augmented reality complement the traditional skills essential to care for cultural heritage. In line with the EU priority on advancing cooperation on digitising cultural heritage, the mapping of skills and creation of training modules will include core and transversal digitisation and digital preservation skills.
Meet the members of CHARTER
CHARTER unites 47 European cultural heritage actors covering 5 fields of analysis: safeguarding and preservation; crafts and traditional knowledge; dissemination and communication; knowledge and planning and management. Their combined expertise guarantees an evidence based holistic approach towards the heritage sector’s challenges and needs. The Alliance values an integrated approach that favours participative decision making processes according to the partners’ level of engagement with CH, their competences, expertise and experience.
The organisations behind CHARTER represent both demand and supply sides. All are aware of the specific educational, occupational and economic frameworks, policies and agendas of the EU that guide each work area and profession, as well the mechanisms required for up-skilling and reskilling to sustainably address the needs of a changing sector and its workforce.
The full and affiliated members bring with them valuable know-how to ensure that CHARTER covers all parts of the cultural heritage sector.
- The education and training providers seek to improve clarity on curricula provision, types, levels and delivery routes to promote quality in learning outcomes, equivalence and mobility.
- The industry wishes to be certain of the availability of high-quality expertise, distributed regionally to facilitate the sustainable access, use and promotion of cultural heritage.
- Public bodies and agencies need to articulate policies that safeguard, sustain and promote cultural heritage for the common good by resourcing the transmission of skills.
- The people who work in the sector seek recognition for their roles and mission as these relate to experience, expertise and professional qualification.
FULL AND AFFILIATED MEMBERS
Academic / Training field:
- Universitat de Barcelona (Spain)
- Akademie der bildenden Ku?nste Wien (Austria)
- Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam (The Netherlands)
- Fondazione Scuola dei Beni e delle Attivita? Culturali (Italy)
- Go?teborgs universitet (Sweden)
- Universita? degli studi di Genova (Italy)
- Universite? Sorbonne Paris 13 Nord (France)
Industry / Employers partners:
- Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Ireland)
- Vlaams steunpunt voor cultureel erfgoed (Belgium)
- Institutul National al Patrimoniului (Romania)
- Kultur und Arbeit (Germany)
- Museovirasto – Finnish Heritage Agency (Finland)
- Naciona?la? kultu?ras mantojuma pa?rvalde (Latvia)
- Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo (Italy)
- Zavod za varstvo kulturne dedis?c?ine Slovenije (Slovenia)
- An Chomhairle Oidhreachta – The Heritage Council HC (Ireland)
European / International networks:
- C.C.O. – European Confederation of Conservator-Restorers’ Organisations
- Verband der Restauratoren
- ENCATC – European Network for Cultural Management and Policy
- European Historic Houses
- ERRIN – European Regions Research and Innovation Network
- ICOMOS – International Council on Monuments and Sites
- NEMO – Network of European Museums Organisations (Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.)
Regions:
- ADRAL – Age?ncia de Desenvolvimento Regional de Alentejo (Alentejo, Portugal)
- Eusko Jaurlaritzaren (Euskadi, Spain)
- Freie Hansestadt Bremen (Bremen, Germany)
- Regione Toscana (Toscana, Italy)
- Va?stra Go?taland La?ns Landsting (Va?stra Go?taland, Sweden)
ASSOCIATE MEMBERS
- ICCROM- The International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property
- ICOM – International Council of Museums | ICOM-CC and ICOM-ICTOP
- European Network for Conservation Restoration Education (ENCoRE)
- Europa Nostra
- European Association for Architectural Education
- Direzione Generale Educazione, Ricerca e Istituti Culturali (Italy)
- Office of Public Works (Ireland)
- Istituto Centrale per la Patologia degli Archivi e del Libro (Italy)
- Historic Environment Scotland (UK)
- Regione Lombardia (Italy)
- Viceconsejeri?a de Cultura y Patrimonio Cultural. Gobierno de Canarias (Spain)
- Complexul National Muzeal ASTRA (Romania)
- ART-ER Attractiveness Research Territory – Emilia-Romagna (Italy)
- Po?le patrimoine. Re?seau de coope?ration des acteurs du patrimoine culturel en Pays de la Loire (France)
- Teatro Pubblico Pugliese (Italy)
- EXARC – Experimental Archaeology (The Netherlands)
- Swedish Association for Building Conservation Contractors and Consultants (Sweden)
- Universidade Nova de Lisboa. Faculdade de Cie?ncias e Tecnologia.Dep Conservac?a?o e Restauro (Portugal)
- CULTLAB – The Laboratory for the Study and Conservation of Ancient & Modern Cultural Properties. University of West Attica Faculty of Applied Arts and Culture (Greece)
Connect with CHARTER : Visit www.charter-alliance.eu for more information and subscribe to the newsletter.
