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    About

    • What We Do
    • Heritage Update
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    Events & Activities

    • 2021 Heritage BC Conference
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    • Canada Historic Places Day
    • Dates to Know
  • Learning Centre

    Learning Centre

    • A Guide to Making a Case for Heritage
    • Heritage Conservation Tools: Resource Guides
    • Upcoming Webinars: Winter and Spring 2021
    • Webinars On-Demand
    • Heritage BC Workshops
    • Other Heritage Education Programs
  • Cultural Maps

    Cultural Maps

    • Submerged Heritage Resources
    • Columbia Basin Region Heritage Places
    • Francophone Historic Places Map
    • Chinese Canadian Historic Places Map
    • Japanese Canadian Historic Places
    • South Asian Canadian Map
    • War Monuments and Memorials Map
  • Resources

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    • Conservation in BC Reports
    • Definitions and Heritage FAQs
    • Funding Opportunities
    • Heritage Real Estate
    • State of Heritage: Provincial Roundtables
    • Indigenous Cultural Heritage
    • Local Government: Library of Source Documents
    • Racism: Do Not Let the Forgetting Prevail
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Intangible Heritage in a Tangible World: Writing the Playbook

animated gif spelling heritage in action wth colourful letters

Intangible Heritage in a Tangible World: Writing the Playbook

Thursday, May 27, 2021
The Advocates and Practioners: 9:00am-12:00pm
The Innovators and Visionaries: 1:00pm-4:00pm

Tangible and intangible heritage may be very different, yet they can also be so interconnected that they can be described as two sides of the same coin. Carrying meaning and the embedded memory of humanity, tangible and intangible heritage rely on each other when it comes to understanding their meanings and importance.

Yet even as our understanding and practice of heritage evolves, there is still a tendency to explain heritage through visual and tactile interactions. It is for that reason, no doubt, that UNESCO recommended heritage sites develop new ways to bring together movable and immovable, tangible and intangible, natural and cultural heritage and “[to] develop documentation tools and standards in establishing holistic museums and heritage practices.”

In BC, our heritage conservation tools, inscribed in legislation, have not evolved in the same ways, leading heritage guardians to ask, “How do we recognize intangible heritage in a tangible environment?”

In this session, we explore this question and look closely at new directions from around the world and practices right here at home. We have divided the day into four conversations so that we can explore this vital topic from different perspectives and experiences.

The Advocates: we start the day in conversation with our panel of advocates, who have their fingers on the pulse of the big ideas and trends.

  • Katharine Turvey: Canadian Commission for UNESCO
  • George P. Nicholas: Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University
  • Agnes Pawlowska-Mainville: University of Northern BC; Member International Committee on Intangible Cultural Heritage ICOMOS

The Practitioners: in this session, we explore the inventive ways our BC colleagues incorporate intangible cultural heritage into their work. Inspiration is in our own backyard.

The Innovators: we hear from those who are breaking new ground in this session.

The Visionaries: Reflecting on what they heard throughout the day, we ask our final group of panellists to propose a bold call to action.

  • Cody Groat: Indigenous Heritage Circle; Department of History, Simon Fraser University
  • Don Luxton: Donald Luxton & Associates
  • Sharanjit Kaur Sandhra: South Asian Studies Institute, University of the Fraser Valley
  • David Schimpky, Director of Secretariat at Canadian Commission for UNESCO
  • Moderator: Wilco van Bemmel, CEO, Dunefield

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Schedule and timings are subject to change without notice. Periodically check the website for changes or email us if you have questions.

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As an organization of provincial scope, Heritage BC recognizes that its members, and the local history and heritage they seek to preserve, occupy the lands and territories of B.C.’s Indigenous peoples. Heritage BC asks its members to reflect on the places where they reside and work, and to respect the diversity of cultures and experiences that form the richness of our provincial heritage.