Whispers of Time: Heritage as Narratives Of Climate-Change

In the face of escalating climate crises, exemplified by devastating wildfires in Greece and Italy, a severe heat wave in India, and ash-covered New York from Canadian forest fires, scientists warn of accelerated risks. The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) may collapse earlier than anticipated, signalling profound shifts in climate patterns (IPCC 2022). This reinforces the urgent recognition of climate change as the paramount threat to humanity and cultural heritage (ICOMOS 2021).

By 2050, climate change is predicted to significantly impact both natural (Stocker et al., 2014) and historically built environments (UNEP, 2016). Despite this, the understanding of physical environmental risks to cultural heritage remains incomplete, hindering the development of effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. UNESCO defines cultural heritage comprehensively, encompassing tangible, natural, and intangible elements. The WRENCH project builds upon this definition, conceiving heritage as a complex interplay of material and immaterial legacies within landscapes and the narratives woven around them.

WRENCH challenges the separation of material and immaterial aspects, emphasizing their dialectic and performative interconnectedness. Whether embodied in a colossal dam, as seen in the Vajont Dam Disaster (1963), or in the narratives of modernization etched into landscapes, material structures and stories are inseparable. The project contends that storytelling, through established arts, texts, or experimental practices, holds equal cultural significance to traditional monuments. The transient heritage of cityscapes, streets, and buildings, imbued with the narratives we craft, is as vital as tangible structures like churches.

WRENCH pursues a dual objective: (a) to formulate a transdisciplinary methodology uniting environmental sciences, engineering, and humanities to assess the impact of climate change on both material and immaterial heritage and (b) to leverage heritage as a storytelling tool, rendering climate change risks visible and enhancing public awareness.

The transdisciplinary methodology of WRENCH encompasses several key components:

(1) Advanced Climate Modelling: Utilizing state-of-the-art climate models for data analysis, extracting historical data, and projecting future hydrometeorological variables.

(2) Physical Testing and Structural Modelling: Investigating the impact of extreme environmental conditions on historical materials and structures through in-situ physical testing, rheological model development, and advanced structural modelling.

(3) Immaterial Heritage Assessment: Employing historical methodologies, including archival research, oral history, and audiovisual materials, alongside participatory research involving local communities.

(4) Holistic Framework Development: Creating a comprehensive framework for evaluating the effects of climate change on cultural heritage.

Through this multifaceted approach, WRENCH aims to deepen our understanding of climate change's repercussions on heritage while utilizing storytelling as a potent means to communicate and foster awareness.