International risk management courses to test and further develop concepts, methodology and tools with users.
In the development of methodology and tools for CRM, the RCE has collaborated over many years with the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) in Rome and the Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) in Ottawa.
City tour during the international course in Beijing, 2009.
The knowledge and experience developed jointly since 2005 have been combined in an English language manual and database. These were used for international courses in Beijing (2009) and Ecuador (2009) and the e-learning course 'Reducing Risks to Heritage' (2011). These courses have contributed to the development of an international 'risk management community' that shares knowledge and experience and distributes the approach worldwide. The collaboration concluded with the 'Reducing Risks to Heritage' International Meeting 2012 (RCE Amersfoort).
The thirty international participants of the e-learning course on risk management for cultural heritage went through the five steps of the risk management process using their own case studies as examples. These ranged from museum and archive collections to historic buildings and archaeological sites. In the online learning environment they received videos, PowerPoint presentations and assignments weekly on topics such as cultural valuation, value loss due to damage, identification, analysis, quantification and cost-effective risk mitigation. Discussions, group work and discussions with trainers took place on the web platform. At the end of the course, participants had gained an understanding of the risks for their situation, they were able to identify priorities for the measures to be taken and enter into discussions with colleagues about the deliberate use of limited resources.
150 participants from 39 countries shared their experiences of risk management during the concluding 'Reducing Risks to Heritage' International Meeting 2012. Case studies ranged from the World Heritage site of Petra in Jordan and wells in Yemen to the Tate Collection and Indian mural paintings. The members of the CRM team gave presentations about CRM methods, scenario flowcharts, vibrations, museum theft, air filtration and climate. There was a presentation from the Secure Heritage programme on fire in museums and a demonstration of the database for incident registration (DICE). Click on this link for an impression of the meeting.
One result of the international courses and meeting was the facilitation of two master classes at the University of Cambridge in 2012 and 2013 in collaboration with The National Archives and The British Museum. These were opportunities to disseminate the risk calculation methodology in the UK and to reinforce the network there.