UNESCO Chair for cultural heritage and urban development
Cities and regions around the world are affected by structural change and are facing comprehensive transformation processes, many of which have yet to emerge. Mitigation and adaptation to climate change, rural exodus, resource management and resilience, as well as the co-productive design and planning of cities and regions are key challenges for sustainable and inclusive development while considering and safeguarding cultural heritage.
In order to adequately address these challenges, the Chair of Urban Planning and Design and the Institute of Urban Design and European Urban Studies applied for the successful recognition as UNESCO Chair for Cultural Heritage and Urbanism with a thematic focus on safeguarding the intangible and tangible heritage of the built environment.
The application to establish the UNESCO Chair, located at the Institute for Urban Design and European Urban Studies of the Faculty of Architecture at RWTH Aachen University, was positively approved by UNESCO in Paris in fall 2022 and will be established in spring 2023.
The UNESCO Chair is thus part of the UNITWIN/UNESCO Chair Program. The Chair's task is to shape the transformation of cities and neighborhoods in a sustainable way, with special attention to cultural heritage. In research and teaching - especially with the Master's program "Transforming City Regions" - the Chair wants to dedicate itself to interdisciplinary education and international transformative research. To this end, among other things, two UNESCO-themed courses are offered each semester. In close cooperation with the German UNESCO Commission, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, the UNESCO World Heritage Center and the organizations ICOMOS, ICCROM and IICN, the discourse on the future of historic urban landscapes will be conducted.
Term
2023 -
UNESCO: Chair Holder
UNESCO: Chair Coordination