Heritage Partnership Conference
London, UK
May 1998
Executive Director Ng Ai Wah was sponsored by the British Council to
this conference co-ordinated by The National Trust. Ideas were exchanged
with the representatives from over 130 European and Asian nations. The
five main themes of the conference were:
- The spirit of conservation-for who and why we are protecting the heritage
- Linking people and place - sense of place and belonging
- Sustainability of heritage sites - tourism and other developments
- Technical skills involved - ways to share and educate
People to people exchange - borderless world and the complexities thereof
Following the conference, Ng Ai Wah met with representatives from English
Heritage, the Civic Trust, the Spitalfields Trust and the Department for
Culture, Media and Sport.
Promotion of Culture and History in the APEC Region Seminar
Manila, Philippines
June 1998
Council Member Lim Huck Chin sponsored his own participation in this
conference jointly organised by the Philippine Department of Tourism and
the APEC Tourism Working Group (TWG). The specific objectives of the seminar
were to:
- Identify current and projected issues related to cultural heritage
and historic built environments
- Share experiences with successful public-private partnerships in the
cultural tourism sector
- Provide a forum for cultural exchange, recognition of the value of
cultural awareness and an understanding of the APEC region's cultural
diversity
- Develop programmes and activities to promote the understanding and
conservation of culture and history
Papers presented covered a cross-section of topics such as culture and
history, trends and patterns in cultural tourism, ways and means of monitoring
the impact of tourism activities, aspects of the economics of conservation,
community participation and sustainability in cultural tourism development
and implementation, site interpretation, and the benefits of conservation
in culturally and historically significant sites.
Creating Attractive Cities for Sustainable Urban Development
Yokohama, Japan
November 1998
Council Member Laurence Loh, sponsored by CITYNET the organisers of the
conference, presented a paper entitled 'Sustaining existing urban environments
for tourism development-A case for Georgetown'. It outlined what needs
"to be done to maintain social, cultural and historical continuity
in a place... and how individuals and groups in the private and public
sectors can develop programmes and projects to enhance, upgrade and strengthen
the qualities inherent in a way of life". Loh maintains that "Georgetown,
Penang, with its intact traditional architecture, streetscape and matrix
of thriving socio-economic activities, (is) in its present form marketable
as a heritage tourism product."
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