CHEERS 
Cultural HEritagE. Risks and Securing activities
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Outcomes

Overview

Floods, forest fires and other natural disasters are becoming more frequent and devastating because of climate change. Apart from human lives and economic infrastructures, they also pose a threat to the cultural heritage that shapes people’s identity and contributes to the Alpine economy. CHEERS created national and transnational tools, governance schemes and intervention guidelines to safeguard cultural heritage from natural hazards. It has provided local Alpine communities with a legal framework, knowledge and skills to organise the securing of their cultural resources.

Factsheet

  • 2014 – 2020
  • Liveable
  • Sustainably valorise Alpine Space cultural and natural heritage
    • Group 1: To develop an effective research and innovation ecosystem
  • 04/2018
  • 08/2021
  • 2.092.316 EUR
  • 1.693.466 EUR

Partners

Lombardy Foundation for the Environment (Lead partner)
  • Lead partner
  • Italy
  • Lombardia
  • Milano
    Catholic University of the Sacred Heart
    • Italy
    • Lombardia
    • Milano
        Touring Club of Italy
        • Italy
        • Lombardia
        • Milano
            National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment
            • France
            • Rhône-Alpes
            • Saint Martin d'Heres
                BRGM - French Geological Survey
                • France
                • Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
                • Marseille
                    Slovenian Forestry Institute
                    • Slovenia
                    • Zahodna Slovenia
                    • Ljubljana
                        Idrija Mercury Heritage Management Centre
                        • Slovenia
                        • Zahodna Slovenia
                        • Idrija
                            Austrian Research Center for Forests
                            • Austria
                            • Wien
                            • Vienna
                                Austrian Institute of Technology
                                • Austria
                                • Wien
                                • Vienna
                                    VALABRE Consortium
                                    • France
                                    • Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
                                    • Gardanne
                                        University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland
                                        • Switzerland
                                        • Ticino
                                        • Canobbio
                                            Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society
                                            • Germany
                                            • Oberbayern
                                            • München
                                                • 45.4892079.1936874
                                                • 45.46185439.177056282599018
                                                • 45.46419439.1896346
                                                • 45.18366835.75448
                                                • 43.230195712668795.4241505042428715
                                                • 46.052666214.480088002780466
                                                • 46.0024919514.024783559204987
                                                • 48.178268416.302980305239764
                                                • 48.208353716.3725042
                                                • 43.4556135.4710661
                                                • 46.03497818.9670996
                                                • 48.154904711.5832765

                                                Outcomes


                                                • CULTURAL HERITAGE. RISKS AND SECURING ACTIVITIES.

                                                  Tool
                                                  Approaches, tools and techniques of emergency planning for protecting cultural heritage
                                                  All over Europe, emergency plans are the instrument commonly used to manage preparedness and response to natural hazards and risks in the territory. When a disaster hits, as a consequence of a natural hazard (a flood, an earthquake, a landslide, a forest fire etc…), the community is prepared and ready to tackle the emergency thanks to plans that have been designed in “peacetime”. The true focus of emergency planning is, firstly and rightly so, people’s safety and it will be accepted as a premise. In most parts of Europe, disaster management plans at the local level seldom include cultural heritage as an objective for safeguarding and response measures. This is particularly true when it comes to non-managed assets, minor and local cultural assets widespread on the territory – for instance, old chapels that can be found in Alpine valleys – whereas more frequently major museums or cultural sites may already have their own Emergency Plans in place. Therefore, the main goal of this Sourcebook is to provide clear guidelines on how to operate according to the current Civil Protection and Disaster Management response systems in place, in order to integrate the specific needs of cultural heritage and ensure its protection on the territory.

                                                • A new concept of Civil Protection Plan

                                                  Tool
                                                  Generalize the experiences on pilot areas
                                                  The aim of this document is to generalize the experiences on pilot areas acquired by the Cheers consortium in order to provide, in the form of an easy-to-read guideline, a synthesis of the main steps that local communities are invited to take when dealing with emergency planning for the safeguard of cultural heritage against natural hazards.

                                                • Local strategies. The six pillars for salvaging cultural heritage against natural hazards.

                                                  Strategy
                                                  Policy recommendations

                                                • What is Cheers?

                                                  Strategy
                                                  Short animated sequence about motivation and importance of the project.
                                                  In a short animated sequence, the video offers a summary of the motivations and importance of the project for the protection of the cultural heritage of the Alps in the face of emergencies caused by natural disasters. The Alpine cultural heritage is very rich and of great importance both for local communities and internationally, as evidenced by the numerous world heritage sites registered on the UNESCO lists. However, this heritage is exposed to a variety of natural hazards, which can lead to real natural disasters, such as floods, landslides, earthquakes and extreme weather events. Such disasters can damage the cultural heritage in a very important way, to the point of causing their loss. The CHEERS project proposes a series of useful activities to prepare for emergencies involving cultural heritage, thus reducing the damage caused by disasters. The activities and expected results are linked to 4 main objectives: 1. Disseminate a concept of "know-how for the rescue of Alpine cultural heritage" by collecting and enhancing knowledge of operational rescue practices, past experiences and lessons learnt and decision-making processes developed around cultural heritage at risk both in peacetime and during field activities; 2. To strengthen the knowledge of the cultural heritage exposed to risks in the Alpine territory; 3. Increase the awareness and participation of stakeholders and communities through training activities, strengthening of knowledge and information and direct involvement in the planning of rescue operations of cultural heritage; 4. Integrate civil protection plans with indications relating to the protection and rescue of cultural heritage in order to make intervention in emergencies more effective and efficient. By developing these activities, it may not be possible to save everything and ensure that nothing is damaged or lost, but certainly the impact of natural events on the Alpine cultural heritage could be reduced.