HCM CITY — Leading international educators, researchers and practitioners will gather at the Heritage Preservation and Economic Development conference in HCM City on September 10 to share experiences, techniques and technologies to make heritage preservation accessible to local institutions, architects, engineers, students of technical faculties, and contractors.

The two-day event is part of a series of activities to be organised by the Italian consulate, Italian Chamber of Commerce in Việt Nam, UNESCO, and SCE Project Asia, which is a leading Italian engineering and architecture firm, to bring knowledge of heritage preservation to the Vietnamese public.

The conference will feature a business seminar on strategic investments in heritage preservation dedicated to local institutions and real estate developers where experts will illustrate the tangible and intangible advantages for those who invest in heritage projects.

A design workshop will be held at the University of Architecture and Văn Lang University in HCM City by professors from IUAV University of Venice, Italy.

It is open to students and will consist of an urban design exercise on a crucial preservation issue in HCM City.

Heritage Preservation and Economic Development is a Pan-Asian initiative by SCE Project Asia in collaboration with IUAV University of Venice and the Venice Architectural Association.

The initiative focuses on the advantages of preserving the architectural past of a nation, and aims to raise awareness of the importance of preserving the architecture and reusing existing building stock. 

Events have been successfully held in Yangon (Myanmar) and Hà Nội, and the next is in October in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia). 

In 2020 SCE Project Asia and VAA plan to take this initiative to other major cities such as Jakarta, Singapore and Tokyo. — VNS