Life in Europe is being transformed. The fossil fuels we burn in our daily lives are causing dangerous levels of climate change – and so a green transformation towards a post-carbon economy and more resilient communities is imperative. Digital technology is transforming how we live and how we do our work. Europe’s society is being transformed via intra-European mobility, globalisation, and diverse migrations. These three strands – a Triple Transformation – are linked in complex ways. This idea of Triple Transformation is at the core of some of Europe’s greatest aspirations, including the European Green Deal, the New European Bauhaus, and the objectives of Europe’s Digital Decade.
Cultural heritage is more than just a sector, it acts as a vector that can guide, oppose, or drive change. Culture heritage has the power to ground transformation strategies in place-based, rights-based and people centred strategies and to root them in the European values of cultural diversity, human rights, and participatory democracy. Shared cultural heritage has been the foundation on which Europe is built. And so how will this foundation serve Europe in the midst of this Triple Transformation?
These topics are at the heart of a major international project funded by the European Commission – the European Heritage Hub – led by Europa Nostra in consortium with leading heritage organisations across of Europe, including the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Krakow. This panel introduces participants to the Hub and its concept of Triple Transformation and explores the Hub’s aims to raise the capacity of Europe’s heritage ecosystem to serve as a vector for inclusive and just transition as well as a sustainable digital transition, and also to adapt and thrive in the face of the impacts of climate change and of these transitions.
Panelists:
Dr Katarzyna Jagodzińska, Head of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub in Krakow
Dr Aleksandra Janus, Co-Director and Member of the Board of Centrum Cyfrowe, Warsaw
Robert Piaskowski, Plenipotentiary for Culture of the Mayor of the City of Krakow
Andrew Potts, Heritage and Climate Action Advisor at Europa Nostra
Moderated by Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailovic, Secretary General of Europa Nostra
Biographical notes
Dr Katarzyna Jagodzińska is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of European Studies, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, head of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub for Central and Eastern Europe and first Director for Programming in the Toy Museum in Krakow. Previously worked at various positions at the International Cultural Centre in Krakow. She is art historian and journalist, specialises in museums studies and cultural heritage. Her current research project addresses participation and democratisation of museums. Author of five books on museums (including ‘Museums and Centers of Contemporary Art in Central Europe after 1989’, Routledge, 2020) and co-author of Europa Nostra report ‘Cultural Heritage Counts for Europe’.
Dr Aleksandra Janus is an activist and a researcher as well as initiator of numerous cultural and artistic projects and working groups, author of academic articles and publications, Director and Board Member of Centrum Cyfrowe, founder of Open Culture Studio operating within CC as a tech lab for heritage institutions, President of the Zapomniane Foundation, and co-leader of the Engaged Memory Consortium. She holds a PhD in Anthropology from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and closely collaborates with the Research Center for Memory Cultures (Jagiellonian University), a member of an international Thinking Through the Museum project and network. She also co-founded two initiatives advocating for museums to take action in the face of the climate crisis: a working group ‘Muzea dla klimatu’ (Museums for Climate) and Culture for Climate collective.
Robert Piaskowski is the Plenipotentiary of the Mayor of Krakow for Cultural Affairs, director of strategic development in the Department of Culture and National Heritage of the City of Cracow, manager, animator of culture, and sociologist. He studied literature, sociology, social sciences, and cultural diplomacy at the Jagiellonian University, University of Provence Aix-Marseille, and at Collegium Civitas in Warsaw. He is a co-author of the Krakow Culture policy and is responsible for the implementation of flagship industry programmes for specific cultural sectors. On behalf of the mayor of Krakow, he is responsible for supporting Krakow’s cultural sector for war-stricken Ukraine and its cultural heritage.
Andrew Potts is the Heritage and Climate Action Adviser to Europa Nostra and the European Heritage Hub. Prior to joining Europa Nostra, Andrew coordinated the Secretariat of the Climate Heritage Network (www.climateheritage.org). Andrew’s work with the CHN continues at Europa Nostra, which is the Co-Chair of the CHN’s European Region. Andrew formerly served as the Coordinator of the ICOMOS Climate Change and Heritage Working Group. A lawyer by training, his law practice originally focused on arranging public and private finance for the adaptive reuse of historic buildings.
Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailovic has dedicated her life to championing Europe’s shared values and cultural heritage. She has worked for Europa Nostra for over 30 years, and was appointed as the organisation’s Secretary General in 2000. She regularly interacts and works closely with all EU institutions, the Council of Europe, UNESCO and numerous public and private bodies committed to cultural heritage. She is also committed to climate action, being the regional co-Chair of the Climate Heritage Network. She holds a graduate degree in International Law (Belgrade) and a postgraduate degree in European Law and Politics (Nancy).