PARTIE 2 - Icomos

Annick DANEELS (La construction en terre crue dans les tropiques humides) presented a case for understanding
the use of the materials in the past, the advantage of systems, and how clever past civilizations were when
using local materials. They understood how to avoid floods, drain the water, and avoid humidity.
Eunice SALAVESSA (Eco-plasters Revive the Traditional Plasterwork Technique of the Past) presented a project
that illustrated that traditional knowledge of plasters stuccos can be used for contemporary purposes.
Thierry JOFFREY (Une meilleure efficacité des programmes d’habitat) told us that local intelligence developed
over time holds remarkable potential. We have a lot to learn or re-learn from this local intelligence.
Unfortunately, in our globalization era, we often favor quantity over quality. Universal or “ready-made”
solutions are not efficient in the long term, but can ultimately be counterproductive.
Helen VAN BERCH VAN HEEMSTEDE stated that over insulation is harmful to our health and is economically
non-profitable. It increases the emission of CO2 and accelerates the deterioration of construction materials.
Unfortunately the logic over the last decades was: productivity and gain. In that way it’s impossible to give
sustainable solutions. We should question ourselves in order to return to the healthier and less extreme
solutions about insulation.
Conclusion
Some harmonious ideas were incorporated into the various presentations. Looking back on the past we were
given examples of ancient and pre-industrial societies that understood the threat of the environment around
them, had learned to live within that environment, and knew how to mitigate potential disasters. Building
crafts were passed forward to the coming generations; some of this embodied knowledge has become lost to
us; and it will need to be rediscovered. Local knowledge holds a remarkable potential to maintain and expand
future built heritage.
What is sustainability and how does sustainability relate to heritage conservation? We are called upon to
challenge the popular thinking on this issue and not settle with conforming to mandated measures to achieve
what is represented as sustainability. Heritage conservation is the real sustainable development. We need
to return to traditional techniques and practices and look for ways of using natural materials such as wood,
earth and stone rather than nonrecylable amd non-degradable materials that are defined by unrecognizable
molecules. We must build upon the past and our ancestors’ use of passive climatic control systems. In this
way we can also maintain the spirit of the place.
These are great challenges to which we must rise. We have been shown the difficulties in the so called third
world with the negative perception of inhabiting heritage buildings instead of modern ones. We must ask
ourselves if we can ask societies to remain in and sustain their villages of mud and adobe if we are not willing
ourselves to adopt the lifestyles that they imply. Can we lower our own expectations for physical comfort?
We must find a balance between the quaint and the comfortable, between the old and the modern.
The globalized world and its standardized procedures also present us with challenges for the future. We must
be willing to adapt our approaches to account for regional diversity in climate, techniques, available materials,
and construction skills. We must question the status quo with expectations for building envelopes, ventilation
control, etc. whose energy benefits may be at the cost of our heritage as well as our health. Finally we must
re-evaluate our relationships with our surrounding physical and cultural environments and find ways to be a
part of the environment rather than ways to isolate ourselves from it.
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LE PATRIMOINE, MOTEUR DE DÉVELOPPEMENT
HERITAGE, DRIVER OF DEVELOPMENT