How Can We Prevent the Next Notre Dame?
Today is the International Day For Monuments and Sites, also called World Heritage Day. Until Monday evening, I was eager to celebrate the 2019 theme, “Rural Landscapes,” and share updates with you from our community programs in Morocco, China, and Romania.
But today’s celebrations are overshadowed by recent tragedy: the devastating fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
For over eight hundred years, this famous medieval cathedral has been distinguished by its size, antiquity, and architectural interest. Its distinct flying buttresses and Rayonnant Gothic style have placed this architectural masterpiece at the heart of French culture and history, distinguishing it as a beloved national symbol.
Today we are confronted by the fact that disasters do not discriminate based on historic or architectural relevance. Even the world’s most famous historic structures are vulnerable to disasters. On the evening of April 15, flames engulfed Notre Dame’s roof and iconic spire, massively damaging the statues, nave, apse, transept, ambulatory, and choir. Thanks to the swift actions of firefighters, staff, and onlookers, the stone structure remains standing despite the damage, and many religious relics were saved from the flames.
I mourn this destruction not only because of Notre Dame’s stunning architecture and history. As a child, my father would read with me Victor Hugo’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Before I ever saw the cathedral in person, I dreamed of the soaring rooftop, the stained glass windows, and the famous bells.
The response over the last several days has shown the immense power this symbol has to unite and inspire. President Emmanuel Macron has pledged to rebuild this Gothic masterpiece within five years, and people from around the world have stepped up with nearly $1 billion for reconstruction.
But although the outpouring of support for Notre Dame is inspiring, it is not enough.
This fire took place in the midst of a multi-year, multi-million dollar restoration effort. Whatever investigators determine the cause of the blaze to be, we must reflect that the work of countless conservators was unable to prevent the outbreak of this disaster.
This is part and parcel of a broader problem. Even after the almost total destruction of the National Museum of Brazil last year and now the burning of Notre Dame, too many cultural institutions and sites are still ill-equipped to analyze risks and prepare for disasters. To truly protect cultural heritage, we must prevent emergencies from occurring in the first place.
Today, I ask you to reflect on the fragility of our shared cultural heritage and to support emergency preparedness measures for other irreplaceable sites. Effective conservation must be based on an integrative approach that incorporates far-seeing and practical preparedness measures into every step of the process, from documentation, planning, and execution to post-disaster response and recovery. Conservation cannot be a defensive approach that responds reactively to emerging threats. It must be offensive, seeking to root out and mitigate risk by integrating sound conservation principles with a broader disaster prevention policy.
We can prevent many disasters from happening if we commit to preparedness and risk mitigation. Global Heritage Fund and our partners have worked diligently to bring this mindset into reality for our world’s vulnerable cultural heritage. AMAL in Heritage is our collective effort to create an accessible, effective emergency preparedness program for cultural heritage. AMAL is a low-cost, scalable solution that enables people on the ground to record data on heritage sites, analyze risks, and prepare comprehensive emergency plans. Learn more here.
Although Notre Dame has suffered enormous damage, all is not lost. As a symbol of France, its survival reflects the pride and resilience of its people. It shows us that people from all walks of life can unite at the loss of true, unequivocal beauty. And it offers us a lesson: even the grandest and most magnificent places, those loved and cherished as the very soul of a nation and a people, are not safe from disaster. Thank you for supporting our mission as we take that lesson to heart and work to protect our vulnerable places from destruction.
Learn more about Global Heritage Fund at https://globalheritagefund.org/.
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