Language Diversity Team

Ona Vileikis, PhD from KU Leuven, architect and cultural heritage specialist. I am researcher at the Institute of Archaeology, University College London (UCL). I also collaborate worldwide with local professionals and government officials, UNESCO, ICCROM, ICESCO, WMF, IICAS, ICOMOS and the private sector, in the fields of capacity building and consulting regarding the World Heritage Convention, digital heritage documentation, conservation and monitoring practices, and heritage impact assessments. I have been serving as advisor to the UNESCO Silk Roads World Heritage nomination for more than a decade. I am also co-editor of the Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development. At ICOMOS I am an expert member of the Executive Committee of CIPA Heritage Documentation and communications officer at the Sustainable Development Goals Working Group (SDGWG). As international co-chair of the GA2023 Scientific Symposium and heading our language dirveristy team I promote a diverse and inclusive event. I’m thrilled to work with our team and welcome all participants in Sydney!

Laure Marique is a Belgian interior architect and cultural heritage professional. Her research focuses on issues of restoration/preservation of built heritage (including a methodology on the restoration of cycloramas), as well as on issues of management and understanding of cultural heritage – in particular dissonant heritage, addressing issues of memory conflicts, post-crisis recovery and integrated approaches with local communities (with the ATRIUM Cultural Route). She also became interested in governance issues and cultural diplomacy through her traineeship at the European Commission, which allowed her to assist in the implementation of EU cultural policies through the Creative Europe programme. She worked for three years in an architectural office specialising in the restoration of historic buildings and is currently collaborating on European cultural projects. A member of ICOMOS Belgium since 2018, she has since joined the ICOMOS working group on rights-based approaches (OCD-RBA) and then ICORP (as an associate member), the ICOMOS Scientific Committee on risk preparedness.

Verónica Heras is a researcher in the cultural heritage area. Since 2007, she is an Architect for the Universidad de Cuenca. In 2009, she obtained a master’s degree from the Raymond Lemaire International Center for Conservation at KULeuven. Later at the same University, she carried out her doctoral research where she developed a monitoring system based on preventive conservation strategies. She has extensive experience in theory and heritage documentation; which are supported by publications in scientific journals. She currently seeks to combine scientific research with practice and transmit it to students from her teaching experience at the University of Azuay since 2017.

A conservation architect based in Montreal, Ève Wertheimer has worked for 20 years on the conservation of buildings and landscapes, with practical experience on a range of projects throughout Canada in both the public and private sectors, as well as in various positions linked to heritage policy development and implementation at the government level. Through these multiple lenses, she continues to explore the relationship between theory and practice as it manifests itself both in heritage and planning policy, as well as through specific projects. She has a particular interest for cultural landscapes, namely in the context of natural protected areas, and for the relationship between natural and cultural heritage and their conservation. In addition to her volunteer involvement with local heritage organizations, Ève has been the secretary of ICOMOS Canada, and keenly taken part in several of the organization’s international activities.

Nargiz Aituganova is a research associate at the International Institute for Central Asian Studies (IICAS) in Uzbekistan. She also works as World Heritage coordinator of Bolgar Historical and Archaeological Complex, and organizes annual World Heritage Volunteers youth action camps in Bolgar and other cultural heritage sites in the Republic of Tatarstan. Nargiz earned a master degree in World Heritage Studies from the University of Birmingham, United Kingdom, and currently studies a second master in Classic and Oriental Archaeology in the Higher School of Economics National Research University. She is the Emerging Professional representative of the Scientific Symposium at the GA2023.

Mahmoud Shaaban is an Egyptian with a bachelor in Egyptology, History and Archeology. He is currently a world heritage capacity building specialist for EuroMed Federation, Berlin. He has been leading many European capacity building” knowledge transfer”.  Recently he joined the board of capacity experts for Egypt and Serdenia: Between History, Culture and Sea Routes” on concepts and world heritage status.  Mahmoud led the “CREacting in Europe” in Athens and participated in the “Heritage in Perspective” project in Berlin on cultural deconstruction.  He holds a master in World Heritage management and conservation from BTU, Germany and Helwan University, Egypt. His thesis is entitled” Investigating the use of UNDP Capacity Building to Improve Egypt’s World Heritage Site Management Effectiveness”. He was a volunteer supporting the World Heritage Site Managers in the 2019 Committee Session. Mahmoud currently contributes as reviewer to the Emerald, Journal of Culture Heritage Management and Sustainable Development.