The National Trust for the Cayman Islands was established with the mission “To Preserve Natural Environments and Places of Historic Significance for Present and Future Generations of the Cayman Islands.”  The lack of comprehensive legislation which would provide the government with the means to effectively conserve and manage the natural environment and resources of the Cayman Islands is of such great importance to the organisation’s membership and to the future wellbeing of the country that the Trust now feels it necessary to make a public statement.

You can read their advertisement, published on 13 May 2010, here and the related Q&A.

Whilst visiting Jakarta last year to speak to the Indonesian Heritage Trust’s Annual Conference and dinner, Simon had invited his Indonesian hosts to come to Australia and attend this ICOMOS Conference. The Australian Council of National Trusts and the Queensland National Trust kindly covered the costs of the Indonesian delegation and so after first visiting Brisbane and then Adelaide, the Indonesian delegation of 4 arrived in Broken Hill.

The Indonesian delegation were given a tour of Simon’s Rupee Station and then officially received at the Broken Hill Council Chambers, where the Mayor and Councillors of the City received them. Simon has also arranged media opportunities with the local TV and newspaper. That evening they attended the Opening reception at the Regional Art Gallery where they were formally acknowledged and welcomed in the Mayor’s speech, the ICOMOS President’s speech and Simon’s speech.

On Friday morning Catrini presented her paper, which attracted much interest and she gave due credit to the Queensland National Trust, the ACNT and INTO – the logos of all of which were very apparent on her slides.

Among some of the other international delegates at the ICOMOS Conference were Sir Neil Cossons, former Chair of English Heritage, and Gerry Takarno, a Hawaiian American who lives in San Francisco and worked with David Brown for many years in NTHP, each of whom made excellent presentations.

Their latest newsletter includes practical tips on how to engage the media along with details of the first ever community museums exhibition in Uganda in May 2010.

After years of anticipation, Suffolk House has finally opened its doors to the public, and is poised to take its place as one of the most important heritage landmarks in Penang. A stunning example of an Anglo-Indian garden house, it is also Malaysia’s only surviving Georgian mansion and one of the finest in Asia.
 
As the operator of the site, Badan Warisan plans not only to make Suffolk House relevant to Penangites, Malaysians and others who have an interest in heritage but to promote the benefits that heritage conservation can generate for the people of Malaysia. In managing the house, Badan Warisan aims to deliver the highest standards in visitor experience and customer care, and to champion creativity and innovation in all activities.

Above all, Badan Warisan wants Suffolk House to be an inspiring and inclusive civic and cultural space, and to achieve and promote international standards of stewardship.

According to Badan Warisan Malaysia’s Executive Director, “visitors can now explore this historic building and its themed heritage garden. They can enjoy a drink or a meal in the restaurant or on the outside deck, and before leaving, pick up a little something from the gift shop. With its lofty Georgian reception rooms, broad verandas and verdant gardens, Suffolk House also offers a perfect setting for weddings and corporate and social functions and events. The house also features an exhibition of original Anglo-Indian furnishing recreated in several rooms.”

The house and garden are open for self-guided tours daily from 10.00am to 6pm (last admissions 5.30 p.m.) Admission costs RM10 but is free for children under six (except on school excursions). Guided tours are available at a cost of RM15 per head (though discounts can be offered to school groups).

Through the group guided tours, visitors can discover the spirit of the 200-year-old building. The tours relate the extraordinary history of Suffolk House – a tale of love and loss, of conspiracy and betrayal – and reveal both the true significance of the First Great House of Penang and the long battle to save it from collapse – a battle that took 50 years to win.

An irresistible selection of dishes is available in the stylish ambience of the Suffolk House Restaurant which serves lunch from 12noon to 3pm, tea from 3pm to 6pm and dinner from 7pm to 11pm.

With its stylish interiors and picturesque lawns, Suffolk House is also a unique and elegant alternative for weddings and social and corporate functions and meetings – and bookings are already being made. Known to many as the Jewel in the Crown of Penang, from the outset the house was conceived as a place of lavish entertainment. Visitors from far and wide commented on its unexampled splendour – a splendour now revived by the award-winning restoration of the house.

Suffolk House

Suffolk House is the sole surviving major Anglo-Indian mansion outside India. It was built in the early 1800s in the pepper estate owned by Captain Francis Light, founder of British Settlement of Penang. Light bequeathed the ”Suffolk Estate” to Martina Rozells, his common law wife of over 20 years, but it was never transferred to her. Instead, in 1805 it was sold by Light’s executors to William Edward Phillips, one of Penang’s early Governors. In its early years, the house was the scene of many important social and official events, and Sir Stamford Raffles is believed to have first discussed the founding of Singapore here.

Over the years, Suffolk House was altered many times but by the 1960s had become very dilapidated and was eventually abandoned in 1974. In the year 2000 funds from the State Government were allocated for the restoration of the roof. Starting in 2004, through major fundraising efforts by HSBC and the Penang Heritage Trust plus further funds from the State, restoration continued, and was finally completed in 2007. Today, as a highly successful public-private partnership, the house stands as a model for future restoration initiatives in the World Heritage Site of George Town.

In 1993, the Penang Heritage Trust conducted a Dilapidation Survey and stabilisation works with the help of SACON from Adelaide, Australia – the town founded by Francis Light’s son, William; and in 2000 the State finally acquired Suffolk House in land swap with the Methodist Church. Phase 1 of the restoration works started with the roof in November 2000 through a RM500,000 allocation from the State Government.  Phase 2 began in 2004 with generous help from HSBC. Restoration was completed by March 2007.

In July 2009, a lease was granted to Badan Warisan by the State Government of Penang to operate the site as a cultural and arts centre.

Badan Warisan Malaysia

The site manager, Badan Warisan Heritage Services Sdn Bhd, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Badan Warisan Malaysia (BWM), the leading national heritage NGO with a reputation for excellence in heritage conservation services spanning more than 25 years.

We work throughout Malaysia, cooperating with community groups, institutions, the private sector and all levels of Government to promote the conservation and preservation of our historic buildings and places.  We play a pivotal role in advocacy through a range of activities including heritage education, and we initiate research and documentation of our heritage assets and contribute at international, national and local levels to debates on the quality of our built environment.

BWM is a registered charity, and completely independent of government.

Over the years, BWM has developed expertise covering the whole spectrum of the conservation process.  Drawing on our membership, we are well equipped to offer a comprehensive range of services in such areas as urban design and planning, architecture, real estate, education, tourism, design and communication, cultural and creative industries and environment and ecology.

Since 1985, BWM has undertaken various building conservation projects including the restoration of Gedung Raja Abdullah (Selangor), Istana Tengku Long (Terengganu), Rumah Bomoh (Perak), Rumah Kutai (Perak), No 2 Jalan Stonor (Kuala Lumpur), No 8 Heeren Street (Malacca) and most recently, Stadium Merdeka (Kuala Lumpur). Many of these projects have won accolades and awards locally and internationally. In addition, for the past 13 years, BWM has been enhancing its skills in the management of heritage sites. Combined with our involvement in cultural heritage tourism and the development of heritage walks and tours, this puts us in a unique position to provide integrated and sustainable management of heritage sites in Malaysia.

Dr Petra Bianchi, has been elected executive president of Din l-Art Helwa, Malta’s National Trust.  Dr Bianchi, who is 42 years old, was director of Din l-Art Helwa from 2006-2008 and vice-president in 2009. She holds a B.A. (Hons), and M.A. from the University of Malta, and a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford. She takes over as executive president from Martin Galea who steps down after his period of office.  

In her address to members at the Annual General Meeting of the heritage organisation held in Valletta on Saturday 27th February 2010, Dr Bianchi urged the authorities to protect the environment and its dwindling resources.  “Our environment is in shambles” said Dr Bianchi, while welcoming Parliamentary Secretary Mario de Marco’s commitment to draft an environmental policy and strategy for the country.

She said, “The countryside is scarred with development everywhere and enforcement on illegal buildings is wholly inadequate. Little progress has been made with alternative energy or the control of emissions. Our coastline and marine environment are under huge pressure, and our water resources are endangered. Important historic sites such as Fort St Angelo and Fort St Elmo are crumbling to pieces.”

During the meeting the heritage NGO approved four resolutions all of which brought home forcibly the urgent need to conserve Malta’s principal natural resources – its water, limestone and endangered fish stocks, as well as to protect its air quality.

Turning to the designs for the entrance to Valletta, Dr Bianchi said that while it was inevitable that aspects of this project would not be met with consensus, Din l-Art Helwa believes that its overall impact will greatly benefit our capital city. She stated that, “Din l-Art Helwa backs the implementation of these imaginative designs, which we regard as a major step forward in the ongoing rehabilitation of Valletta. Din l-Art Helwa believes that this is a project of an exceptionally high standard and that the time has finally come for the entrance to Valletta to receive the attention and the expenditure that it deserves.”

On the opera house ruins, she stated that both an outdoor and an indoor theatre on the site would be acceptable on heritage grounds, however Din l-Art Helwa “favours one holistic vision for the entrance to Valletta following contemporary designs of the highest standard.”  Dr Bianchi pointed out that, “in the past various designs were put forward for a new roofed theatre on that site, yet none of the designs were ever accepted and at times they engendered as much controversy as we are witnessing today about the proposed outdoor theatre. The Prime Minister has stated that he is still open to ideas from theatre practitioners for this site, and we await the outcome with interest. However a decision must be taken and Valletta must be allowed to move on.”

Din l-Art Helwa was pleased to note that the designs would now also extend to the bus terminus and the façade of the residential block at city gate.

This year Din l-Art Helwa spent another €100,000 on its restoration programmes, mainly on St Anthony’s Battery in Qala, Gozo, the Delimara Lighthouse and works at the organisation’s premises in Valletta. It also continued its work on the Red Tower in Mellieha, the altar piece at the chapel of Bir Miftuh, and on several landmarks and statues around the island. Din l-Art Helwa has spent €700,000 on restoration in the last seven years.

‘The Impact of Climate Change on Bermuda‘, is a report written by Dr. Anne Glasspool that examines the effect of climate change on Bermuda. It also suggests how Bermuda can develop strategies to protect it from the resulting threats to the country’s social, economic, physical and environmental wellbeing. The report, which was tabled in the House of Assembly February 5th, 2010, following a ministerial statement by Dr. the Hon. Ewart F. Brown, JP, MP, Premier of Bermuda and Minister of Tourism and Transport, suggests that Bermuda can set an example for small islands by mitigating the processes of climate change. The Premier issued a take note motion on the report for subsequent debate by Members of Parliament.

The 200-page report, produced by the Bermuda National Trust with the support of Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited, substantiates that climate change is as much a threat to Bermuda as to the rest of the world. In particular, the report considers the economic, social and physical vulnerability of small islands and how they relate to Bermuda. It also considers the significant effect of climate change on global food security and two of the island’s most important sectors of the economy, international business and tourism.

Highlights of the report include a study of sea level rise in Bermuda, which threatens the island’s infrastructure through increased flooding during high tides – up to 14 percent of total land area. Rising temperatures, heavier rainfall, more intense storm activity and longer periods of drought also threaten the island’s buildings, transport, waste and sewage, water supply, telecommunications, electricity and other essential services, the ecosystem and even individual human health and livelihoods.

The Heritage Lottery Fund and Visit Britain have launched a joint publication called Investing in Success, exploring the economic impact of heritage tourism.

The document, commissioned by Oxford Economics, concludes that heritage attractions (including natural heritage sites) make a direct contribution to Gross Domestic Product of £12.4 billion – or just over £20 billion if multiplier effects are included.  This puts the heritage attraction industry ahead of the electricity generation industry, car manufacturing, advertising and film making, in terms of its importance to the economy.

The report contains a number of case studies of HLF investments (including Croome Park), and an article by Fiona Reynolds on whether the Trust’s excellent year in 2009 was a blip or an indication of a longer-term trend. Ben Cowell was the Trust’s delegate at the launch event for the report, an ‘on the record’ round table discussion with the Minister for Heritage and Tourism, Margaret Hodge, and a journalist from the Financial Times.

The Financial Times article picked up on the Trust’s successes in 2009, while Margaret Hodge made the point that the Department for Culture Media and Sport’s entire spending on heritage and culture was less than the underspend in the health service last year…

Every summer, thousands of young French and overseas volunteers work together to save French heritage with one of the 170 REMPART associations across the country.   Coming from Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, Macedonia, Canada or from all four corners of France, they discover a project, a monument, restoration techniques, activities, a region.   Above all, they learn to work together.  They exchange experiences, organise themselves, communicate, cook meals and enjoy themselves.   Since 1966, hundreds of castles, forts, houses, abbeys, churches and  industrial buildings have been opened to the public thanks to the actions of thousands of volunteers and association members.

 On 10 June 2010, Union REMPART will be awarded a European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Award in Istanbul, Turkey, (Category 4 – Education, training and awareness raising).

The European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards were jointly launched in 2002 by the European Commission and Europa Nostra, in the framework of the Commission’s Culture Programme, to celebrate outstanding initiatives among the many facets of Europe’s cultural heritage in categories ranging from the restoration of buildings and their adaptation to new uses, to urban and rural landscape rehabilitation, archaeological site interpretations, and care for art collections. Also awarded are prizes for research, dedicated service to heritage conservation by individuals or organisations and education projects related to cultural heritage.

This Awards Scheme aims to promote high standards and high-quality skills in conservation practice, and to stimulate the trans-frontier exchanges in the area of heritage. By spreading the ‘Power of Example’, the Prize also aims to encourage further efforts and projects related to heritage throughout Europe.

EU PRIZE FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE / EUROPA NOSTRA AWARDS – 2011 Edition 

The deadline for next year’s Awards is 1 October 2010. Winners of the 2011 competition will be celebrated in Amsterdam in June 2011.

See www.europanostra.org/heritage-awards/ for more information.  2011 entry forms are now available.