Dr. Munawar pointed out that the threat facing heritage is not merely confined to violence, wars and conflicts, but rather extends to what is known as climate change, where cultural property, heritage sites and monuments are affected by climate change at this current time and in the future as well.
Climate changes are considered the most consequential and latest threats to cultural heritage worldwide, which adversely impact the outstanding universal value of human heritage, including its integrity and authenticity, and its potential for economic and social development both at the local and regional levels.
Climate has influencing factors on the integrity of cultural heritage sites and the existing archeological monuments in open places, such as drought or an upsurge in the surface water level of seas or oceans. Hence, the sustainable preservation of heritage requires a special understanding and a persistent and effective response to these climate effects, given the outstanding universal value of heritage, Munawar added.
He concluded his statement to QNA by saying that heritage is a human value of exceptional global cultural significance. Therefore, efforts to protect heritage from the dangers of wars, conflicts, and climate change are viewed as a local and international humanitarian mission, and simultaneously aim to make the cultural heritage a bridge between the past, present, and future in any society.
Source: Qatar News Agency
