The Nantucket Historical Association (NHA) is hosting a group of working professionals from around the world for a four-week program on Sustainable Built Heritage Conservation and Management for its second year. The program aims to incorporate key components into many of the resiliency efforts already underway on Nantucket and add to the NHA’s efforts to safeguard its historic properties.
“We are thrilled to host this program for its second year and continue this critical work that has been three years in the making since we hosted our first symposium with the National Park Service back in 2022, and had our first eight-week program to evaluate the conditions of each of the NHA’s properties with students and working professionals in the summer of 2023.” Said Niles Parker, NHA Gosnell Executive Director. “This program is possible because of the relationships we have established with our expert partners from the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and Integrated Conservation Resources, Inc. (ICR), and we look forward to working alongside them over the next month.”
Eleven working professionals were chosen from various countries around the globe, including Antigua, Bangladesh, India, Italy, Jamaica, Kenya, Poland, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, and the US. While on island, participants will work independently on individual case studies dedicated to a heritage site in their home country, as well as in groups on local historic sites. The course will run from September 29 through Friday, October 24, with the primary objectives including assessing risks to built heritage, developing appropriate monitoring and adaptation strategies, and building an international network of skilled professionals. The course will include lectures from both international and local experts, hands-on workshops, and site visits to the NHA’s restoration projects.
The course will conclude with presentations on individual case studies on Thursday, October 23, from 1 to 6:30 pm, as well as group case studies on Friday, October 24, from 1 to 5:00 pm. Both sessions will take place at the Whaling Museum and will be free and open to the community.
As the NHA continues its push to preserve its historic buildings through well-researched and expert-supported rehabilitation, it looks forward to sharing more about current restoration projects alongside this International Training Course, and the vital partnerships that make the projects possible. The NHA generously thanks ReMain Nantucket for its continued support of this critical program.
To learn more, contact ask@nha.org. The Nantucket Historical Association preserves, interprets, and shares the diverse stories of Nantucket with all audiences through its collections, properties, programs, and research.