Emergency Preparedness for Cultural Heritage under Threat

Cultural Emergency Response (CER) and the Gerda Henkel Foundation, through its ‘Patrimonies’ funding initiative, support the protection and preservation of cultural heritage in crisis regions. Both Foundations have a history of preventing and minimizing the loss of cultural heritage. In 2019, they launched their first joint call for proposals specifically aimed at Emergency Preparedness for Cultural Heritage under Threat. In the past, CER and the Gerda Henkel Stiftung have jointly supported numerous projects, with scopes varying from fire protection in museums and buildings in Bhutan, India and Zimbabwe to disaster management plans and the implementation of measures to reduce the risk of flooding in a museum in Kenya.

The collaboration on emergency preparedness aimed to support the development and implementation of more preparatory measures to protect heritage buildings, collections and sites in the event of disaster. Both Foundations’ want increase efforts in the field of disaster preparedness, raising awareness of its importance and provide illustrations of the benefits of preventive measures.

About the Gerda Henkel Stiftung

The Patrimonies funding initiative of the Gerda Henkel Stiftung considers projects that focus on the preservation of historical cultural heritage first and foremost in crisis regions. In this context, the Foundation supports measures that make a contribution to preserving cultural heritage, augmenting scientific infrastructure, educating young scientists and establishing networks in science, politics and society in the regions in question.