Addressing the impacts of climate change on our cultural heritage.
Climate change is now considered to be the greatest challenge to the future of our world. The impact of climate change on human societies and cultural diversity, biodiversity and ecosystem services, and the world’s natural and cultural heritage is of urgent concern. Our company is at the forefront of calls for greater consideration within Australia of the impacts now and in the future of climate change on cultural heritage sites and places.
Susan McIntyre-Tamwoy has published in this area since 2007 when she organised a public forum on the subject on behalf of Australia ICOMOS in Cairns. Despite the growing literature warning of the dangers there is still relatively little research on the direct impacts of climate change on Indigenous heritage sites and our historic buildings in Australia; and there is only minimal data on the projected changes that will impact Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and other communities’ cultural practices and lifeways.
The climate change impacts on cultural heritage places can exacerbate and compound impacts from other factors such as pollution and natural weathering and it is essential that environmental impacts of proposed developments consider this issue thoroughly to develop effective mitigation strategies.
We work with communities, governments and other clients to understand, anticipate and manage climate change impacts on tangible and intangible cultural heritage so as to build community resilience.
Our services include:
- Archival research (including images, photographs, and maps)
- Historical research on site conditions
- Predictive modelling
- Community consultation
- Cultural value mapping
- Strategic and policy advice
- Disaster Risk Management plans
- Climate Action Plan
- Climate Risk Assessment
- Heritage Advice
