World Heritage USA Conference and Symposium 2024
21-22 November 2024 in Washington, DC
Climate Change Impacts and Mitigation at U.S. World Heritage Sites
Day Two Schedule
Friday, 22 November: Social Justice and Sustainability in the Face of Climate Change (9am-12 noon)
Check in and Light Breakfast
9am – Welcome by ICOMOS-USA President Douglas C. Comer, Ph.D.
Keynote – Dr. Gary Machlis: “Maria’s Dilemma and the Challenge of Climate Justice”
Dr. Gary E. Machlis is University Professor of Environmental Sustainability at Clemson University. Prior to joining the faculty at Clemson, he served as Science Advisor to the Director, U.S. National Park Service (NPS) during both terms of the Obama administration.
Dr. Machlis received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Washington, and his Ph.D. in human ecology from Yale University. He has written numerous books and scientific papers on issues of conservation, sustainability, disaster response, and the politics of science, including The Future of Conservation
in America: A Chart for Rough Water published by the University of Chicago Press. His newest book is Sustainability for the Forgotten, published in 2024. At Clemson, he teaches courses on social ecology, scientific integrity, and the politics of science.
Dr. Machlis has been active in international conservation and has worked in China on the giant panda, in the Galápagos Islands, and in Kenya, Cuba, and Eastern Europe. He serves on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Board on Environmental Change and Society, its Sustainability Science and Technology Roundtable, and is an Advisor to the Academies’ Scientists and Engineers in Exile or Displaced Program. In 2010, Dr. Machlis was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Panel 6: Assuring that Indigenous Knowledge fits into the United Nations’ Strategic Development Goals (UN SDGs) 10-11am
Moderator: Destry Jarvis
Panelists: Amelia Marchand, Dr. Valerie Grussing, Theresa Pasqual
Panel 6 will comprise 3 nationally prominent representatives of Native organizations or tribes, in order to describe and better understand both the particular impacts of climate change in Indian Country, and how land managers on and off reservations can make best use of indigenous ecological knowledge in managing natural and cultural features to minimize or mitigate climate impacts.
Panel 7: How Climate Change response Should Treat All Fairly 11-12pm
Moderator: Courtney Lyons-Garcia
Panelists: Omar Eaton-Martinez, Marie Walker
This panel will focus on the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) aspects of climate change impacts in minority communities, among immigrant populations and the poor, many aspects of which are often left out of mitigation plans by governments, institutions and corporations.
End of Day 2 Regular Programming: attendees are welcome to explore the Sumner School Museum until close at 5 pm or to attend “Roadmap to Resilience: Disaster-Proofing Heritage,” sponsored by the ICOMOS-USA Emerging Professionals Committee, from 1-4 pm.
Lunch break 12-1 pm
Optional Workshop for Emerging Professionals and interested Symposium attendees – Roadmap to Resilience: Disaster-Proofing Heritage 1-4 pm
Workshop Leaders: Angela Lombardi, Sandeep Langar, and Saadet Toker Beeson of the University of Texas at San Antonio
Resilience has become essential to building performance, particularly to historic structures and sites, as they relate to heritage and cultural identity. This workshop addresses: 1) Heritage resilience and its importance; 2) How historically significant buildings and sites can become resilient; 3) Generating community resilience through historic buildings and sites; and 4) Preserving buildings to ensure the continuity of associated traditions.
REGISTER NOW TO ATTEND