ICOMOS-ISCEAH and the Future of Earthen Architectural Heritage Conservation

Abstract

The ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) International Scientific Committee on Earthen Architectural Heritage (ISCEAH) was created in 2005. Since then, ISCEAH has been an active committee contributing to the awareness, knowledge, and preservation of earthen architectural heritage. A new Bureau was elected in 2018 for a mandate of three years to head and coordinate ISCEAH. In 2021, ISCEAH has 142 expert members, associate members, and emerging professionals and is one of the largest ICOMOS International Scientific Committees (ISCs). ISCEAH has reactivated its membership network, reenergized its five research themes (In-Use, Archaeology, Landscape, Technology, and Seismic), created the new Emerging Professional Working Group, prepared the launch of the international call to organize the Terra 2022 and 2025 congresses, developed collaborations with other ISCs, contributed to the new Climate Change Working Group, responded to various requests regarding earthen World Heritage Sites, revised its bylaws, and planned a road map for an Earthen Architecture Charter. This paper addresses the creation of the earthen committees within ICOMOS and the importance of Terra congresses. It assesses where ISCEAH stands today, its alignment with the ICOMOS Work Program, and where ISCEAH can go from here. This paper allows us to examine the different challenges and opportunities that have been faced so far and how such an examination can contribute to a more strategic and inclusive approach to earthen architectural heritage conservation.