Author: ICOMOS Philippines

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ICOMOS Philippines partners with Gawad Kalinga for Intramuros project

ICOMOS Philippines was among the partners of the Gawad Kalinga Intramuros project last October 1, 2011 that was launched with 2000 student volunteers from all over the Philippines doing work in Intramuros. They cleaned up debris from last week’s typhoon, painted walls, removed growth from the fortifications and built or repaired sidewalks with concrete pavers. This is the first phase of a long-range project to bring Intramuros into the consciousness of the youth so they will respect their heritage.

ICOMOS members will have the opportunity to be involved in future projects.

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ICOMOS Philippines joins Philippine Green Building Initiative

ICOMOS Philippines was invited to represent the heritage sector as a trustee of the Philippine Green Building Initiative (PGBI). In the photo are ICOMOS Philippines President Augusto F. Villalon and member Archt. Dominic Galicia at the induction of PGBI Board Members. They were sworn into office by Hon. Heherson Alvarez, Commissioner for Climate Change

PGBI is a non-profit, voluntary group of professional associations involved with the built-environment who share a common concern with the impacts of global warming and climate change. Its vision is to be the leader in developing a sustainable nation by promoting energy-efficient and environment-friendly design and construction.

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ICOMOS Philippines meets at the Sta. Ana Church in Manila

ICOMOS Philippines met last July 9, 2011 at the White Room of the Sta. Ana Church in Manila. Members involved in the Sta. Ana Community Project, namely Kara Garilao (Fundacion Santiago) and Christian Aguilar (Escuela Taller) shared their work with other ICOMOS members.

ICOMOS members at the Sta. Ana Church camarin.

The Sta. Ana community leaders served traditional Sta. Ana pancit (fried noodles) for merienda (afternoon snack). The meeting was attended by a record 53 people.

Maila Subido, Sta. Ana resident and historian, talks about Sta. Ana history.
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Augusto F. Villalon receives Diwa ng Lahi Award from City of Manila


Dr. Augusto F. Villalon, President of ICOMOS Philippines, recently received the Diwa ng Lahi Award from the City of Manila, the highest distinction given by the city. They cited his continuing work in rehabilitating some Manila districts and for advocating heritage conservation. In the photos are Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim and Gemma Cruz-Araneta, Head of the City of Manila Tourism and Heritage Office, conferring the award on Dr. Villalon.

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ICOMOS Philippines joins in the celebration of World Heritage Day 2011

April 18 is the International Day for Monuments and Sites or World Heritage Day. For 2011, the theme is: The Cultural Heritage of Water.


According to ICOMOS, “Water is one of the key resources required to sustain life. It has led to the development and generation of significant material culture in the form of items, technology and places. How to obtain it, how to store it, how to harness its power and conserve it has motivated human endeavour in a myriad of ways. It has also been the catalyst for the development of significant cultural practices which have generated intangible cultural heritage values. It has inspired poetry, literature, artistic endeavour such as painting, dance and sculpture. It has informed and inspired the development of philosophies and religious practice. The cultural heritage of water, therefore relates not only to the technology and architecture that humankind has developed to manage, utilise and celebrate its life giving properties but also to those intangible values that have shaped our beliefs and practices.”

Ivan Anthony Henares, a member of the ICOMOS Philippines National Committee and expert member of the International Cultural Tourism Committee (ICTC), writes about the cultural heritage of water in the Philippines in International Day for Monuments and Sites 2011 celebrates the cultural heritage of water.

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ICOMOS Philippines and PALA host Cultural Landscapes Forum

The Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras are simply beautiful, a living cultural landscape and inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List. What does it mean to be referred to as a cultural landscape? Are there Philippine laws that can protect and conserve them? How do we become stewards of  an entire mountain ecosystem and even just a single tree?

ICOMOS Philippines and the Philippine Association of Landscape Architects (PALA) will be hosting a Cultural Landscapes Forum on February 26, 2011, 12 to 6 p.m. at the UP College of Architecture. ICOMOS members Archt. Joy Mananghaya, Atty. Kay Malilong-Isberto and Archt. Susan Aquino-Ong will share and give a talk about cultural landscapes, the legal aspects of conservation, and the protection and conservation of Philippine heritage trees.

This is the first of PALA’s CPE-2011 series of lectures. For more information, e-mail Susan Aquino-Ong at sca.susan@gmail.com.

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ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee 2010 Annual Meeting held in Douro Valley, Portugal

The 2010 Annual Meetingof the ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee (ICTC) was held in Douro Valley, Portugal from June 18 to 21, 2010. Ivan Anthony Henares, ICTC Expert Member and representative of the ICOMOS Philippine National Committee, was present at the said meeting.

During the said meeting, Henares invited the ICTC to Vigan, Ilocos Sur for its 2012 Annual Meeting. This invitation had been confirmed by Augusto Villalon, chairperson of the ICOMOS Philippine National Committee. The invitation was accepted by the committee. The Philippines looks forward to hosting the ICTC Annual Meeting in 2012.

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ICOMOS Philippines celebrates the heritage of Agriculture

On the proposal of ICOMOS, 18 April was endorsed as the International Day for Monuments and Sites by UNESCO in 1983. This special day offers an opportunity to raise public awareness concerning the diversity of the world’s heritage and the efforts that are required to protect and conserve it, as well as to draw attention to its vulnerability. For several years now, ICOMOS suggests a topic to be highlighted on this occasion. This has allowed our members and our committees to hold activities, conferences, colloquia or other events to raise awareness on this cultural heritage among the public, the owners or the public authorities by linking a global theme to local or national realities.

This year’s theme is: The Heritage of Agriculture. Ivan Anthony Henares, ICOMOS Philippines member and expert member of the International Cultural Tourism Committee (ICTC), introduces the agricultural heritage of the Philippines in International Day for Monuments and Sites 2010 celebrates the heritage of agriculture.

Accroding to ICOMOS, “In the last two decades, the international NGO’s and public administrations in charge of heritage protection have begun to define and characterize the heritage of agriculture as well as to establish the criteria and tools that should guide the assessment of its values, protection and management. Accordingly, ICOMOS, UNESCO and other international organizations have included these objectives in their ongoing research and projects. It is therefore pertinent to evaluate how heritage properties linked to agricultural and livestock rearing practices are taken into account in current heritage practice by examining significant international experiences in this field, such as the listing of such properties in UNESCO’S World Heritage List and in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, as well as the Globally Important Ingenious Agricultural Heritage Systems Programme (GIAHS), led by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) with other partners such as UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), UNESCO and its World Heritage Centre, ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property), IUCN (The World Conservation Union) and CGIAR (the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research).”

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IDMS 2009: ICOMOS Philippines meeting held last April 18

ICOMOS Philippines met at Escuela Taller in Intramuros last April 18, 2009 to celebrate the International Day for Monuments and Sites. Present at the meeting were Augusto Villalon (Chairperson), Christian Aguilar, Dominic Galicia, Ivan Henares, Jojo Mata, Mico Manalo (Escuela Taller Director), Melvin Patawaran, Tats Rejante Manahan, Cynthia Loza, Nady Nacario, Issa Avendano, Susan Aquino Ong, and Bruce Dawbin (ICOMOS Australia)

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Twinning program between Ifugao Rice Terraces and Cinque Terre bared

A twinning program between the Ifugao Rice Terraces and Cinque Terre, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, has been initiated beginning with a study tour of Cinque Terre this coming May 11 to 20, 2009. UNACOM Secretary General Ambassador Preciosa Soliven, Governor Teodoro Baguilat, Jr. of Ifugao, Mayor Pablo M. Cuyahon of Hungduan, Ifugao and Archt. Joy Mananghaya of ICOMOS Philippines will join this study tour. The objective of the visit is to learn from the management and conservation approaches of this Italian cultural landscape, with the aim of applying some of their best practices to our own Ifugao Rice Terraces. Cinque Terre is a living cultural terraced landscape with vineyards and olives. It faces the same conservation and management challenges that our the rice terraces are facing.