Heritage and Development I
CULTURAL HERITAGE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF HISTORICAL CITIES IN ASIA - Safeguarding traditions & ancient knowledge to promote development. This was the motto of a project planned and carried out by the two NGOs ASIA Onlus (Rome) and Tibet Heritage Fund (Berlin). Both organizations have been working for over a decade on development projects in Tibet that include the preservation of Tibet's unique cultural heritage. With support from the EU, a program to investigate the issues of sustainable preservation of the heritage of Tibet seeks to evaluate adequate methodologies to preserve aspects such as Tibet’s ancient architecture, its traditional cities and its monastic art was launched. Activities include seminars and exhibitions in Italy and Germany, and publications of the results.
In June 18 - 22 2007, three seminars were held in Napoli,Torino and Roma, addressing the same topic. The papers presented gave an overview of Buddhist and Tibetan architecture in the region (Napoli); of the need for and examples of sustainable interventions in architectural design, architectural conservation, urban planning and financial investment in the region (Torino); and examples of successful interventions in Buddhist wall-painting conservation (Roma).
To bring these topics to a conclusion, THF and two German universities have organized an international conference

In parallel, there was an exhibition made by THF about Tibetan architecture on show, entitled: Exploding City Lhasa: Urban Development on the Roof of the World, shown in the foyer of the Main Building, Humboldt University, Unter den Linden 6, Berlin.
The conference abstracts
