A new pilot website launched today aims to ensure that the Cultural Heritage research community across Europe can benefit from each others experience.
The NET-HERITAGE Observatory, a web portal that is being set up by the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) as part of the European funded NET-HERITAGE project, has been developed in response to the fragmentation and distributed nature of the European Research effort.
As the main access point on research related to European cultural heritage, it is the only resource of its nature in the field of heritage science providing detailed up-to-date information on European and national programmes, as well as data and research outcomes.
The aim of the Observatory is to disseminate contributions and results from research programmes and projects, as well as covering news on research issues and views and information on heritage science.
Research outcomes from the NET-HERITAGE programme as a whole will also be uploaded to the web portal, including the coordination of national activities, education, training and knowledge transfer.
The NET-HERITAGE Observatory has 3 main components:
• Online magazine and news content relating to Heritage Science in Europe
• An 'Observatory' database of articles, documents and datasets
• A social network for heritage science researchers, industry and practitioners
The next few months will be crucial to the development and expansion of the web portal as further content is added and its impact widens.
With the official launch of the web portal in September 2011 (coinciding with the end of the NET HERITAGE project) the aim is to build upon the existing pilot site and to strengthen coordination within the field of cultural heritage research.
Professor May Cassar, the Director of the UK’s Science and Heritage Programme said “Cultural heritage is the mirror of society. It constitutes the legacy of tangible artefacts, such as historical buildings and monuments, as well as intangible values, such as traditions, beliefs, customs and practices. So this new web portal will be key in enabling the European science and heritage community to benefit and innovate in an interdisciplinary way.”
The Observatory web portal is intended to be used by a wide audience of Cultural Heritage researchers, practitioners (such as museum and gallery curators), Funding agencies, Policy makers, businesses, SMEs and anyone with an interest in European cultural heritage.
Philip Campbell, the Editor-in-Chief of NATURE and Editorial Board member of the Observatory believes that “Too much of the good work done by conservation scientists around Europe is buried in reports and other sorts of grey literature. This new web portal has the potential to make it much more visible, bringing together into one source of reference the best practice across the Continent in heritage science.”
NET-HERITAGE is a partnership of ministries, funding agencies and national RTD authorities from 14 European countries (Italy, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Island, Latvia, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, United Kingdom) and is coordinated by the Italian Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities (MiBAC).
Professor Cristina Sabbioni, as member of Project coordination unit, said: “NET HERITAGE has embarked on a monumental effort to fulfil a crucial need within EU research policy: to overcome the barriers to exchanging information on coordinated research activity applied to the protection of tangible cultural heritage. Prior to the formation of this ERA-NET project, information on heritage science consisted of exchanges among researchers, as well as dissemination to policy makers, end-users and professional non-researchers. This resulted in the value of heritage science remaining largely invisible to a wider audience and the exchange among researchers fragmented. Now the creation of the Observatory is providing for the first time a concrete and real response to the need to this specific sector of research and is promoting benefits to users”.
The ultimate aim is to strengthen the foundation of scientific and technological research as it applies to the protection of cultural heritage in Europe.
The portal can be accessed at www.heritageportal.eu and further information on the project as a whole can be found at www.netheritage.eu.
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Notes for editors:
AHRC Media Contact: Jake Gilmore, Communications Manager, tel: 07970994586
Arts & Humanities Research Council: Each year the AHRC provides approximately £102 million from the Government to support research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities, from languages and law, archaeology and English literature to design and creative and performing arts. In any one year, the AHRC makes approximately 700 research awards and around 1,350 postgraduate awards. Awards are made after a rigorous peer review process, to ensure that only applications of the highest quality are funded. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK.