#TheNext50 – a World Heritage Panel Discussion

The Island of St Helena was on the UK Tentative List from 2012 but chose not to resubmit a dossier for consideration in 2022. The St Helena National Trust are currently working with Historic England to produce an Historic Environment Record for St Helena which can be used as a tool for conservation, planning and development. Access the St Helena case study presentation.

Helena Bennett, Director St Helena National Trust

Helena Bennett has been the Director of the St Helena National Trust since 2021. Prior to this role she worked as Director of Tourism at Enterprise St Helena, promoting sustainable tourism for St Helena. Helena is also the Chairperson of the Liberated African Advisory Committee on St Helena. 

The Bluedot Festival is a music, science and culture event which has taken place annually at Jodrell Bank since 2016. It combines headline music acts with expert talks and live science experiments. It draws a large audience to the World Heritage Site each year. 

Teresa Anderson, Jodrell Bank centre of Engagement

Dr Teresa Anderson MBE is the Director of the Jodrell Bank Centre of Engagement at Jodrell Bank World Heritage Site (UK). Trained as a physicist, Teresa joined Jodrell Bank in 2003 and established the Centre for Engagement four years later. She is the curator of Bluedot, an annual culture and science festival at Jodrell bank, and led the team for the Jodrell Bank World Heritage Site nomination (inscribed 2019). 

The Hadrian’s Wall Community Archaeology Project (WallCAP) built a community-based network to examine the landscape heritage of Hadrian’s Wall. It aimed to foster local engagement and social investment in heritage landscapes. The project, which ran January 2019 to September 2022 was funded by the National Lottery Fund and hosted by Newcastle University. Fieldwork was carried out at over 15 sites during the project.

Rob Collins, Newcastle University

Dr Rob Collins is a Senior Lecturer in Archaeology (Material Culture of the Northern Frontier) at Newcastle University. Rob previously worked for the Great North museum in Newcastle and for the Portable Antiquities Scheme. He was the Research Associate on the Frontiers of the Roman Empire Digital Humanities Initiative at Newcastle University and the Project Manager for the Hadrian’s Wall Community Archaeology Project (WallCAP) 2017-2022.

The Climate Vulnerability Index is a rapid-assessment tool to assess climate change vulnerability of World Heritage Sites. The Heart of Neolithic Orkney was the first cultural World Heritage Site to pilot this approach. UK partners were then involved in the CVI-Africa Project which held capacity-building workshops with heritage professionals in Tanzania and Nigeria.

Jane Downes, University of the Highlands and Islands

Professor Jane Downes is Director of the University of Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute. She has previously worked for the Fenland Archaeological Trust, Glasgow University and Sheffield University where she was Assistant Director of ARCUS and undertook fieldwork in Orkney. In 1999 Jane became a Lecture at University of Highlands and Islands and established the MA/PGDip in Archaeological practice there. Her research interests are in burial archaeology, prehistoric and landscape archaeology, and the management and sustainable development of landscape and cultural heritage resources. She is involved in the research of several World Heritage Sites in connection with these interests.