Previous Fellows of IMEMS Durham UNESCO World Heritage Site Fellowships

Anouk Lafortune-Bernard

1 October - 1 December 2019

Anouk was based in the Archaeology Department at Durham University. Her research focused on the social and economic impact of cultural heritage and community engagement. Her PhD has analysed the social and economic impact of the development of Lumbini Birthplace of the Buddha and World Heritage Site on local communities. She has been affiliated with Durham University's UNESCO Chair in Archaeological Ethics and Practice in Cultural Heritage since 2016 and has conducted research at several World Heritage Sites in South Asia and Europe, as part of the Chair's research programme.

Click here to view Anouk's report

Wahid Omran

1 November 2019-20 December 2019

Handicrafts are considered a sustainable means of livelihood of large proportion of the local community in Durham. Field-visits, interviews and survey with shopkeepers in Durham in order is important to prepare a list of 50 objects, photographing and, ideally purchasing them. Information concerning each object’s manufacture cost, recommended retail sale price, material and place of manufacture will also be recorded.

I then populated a table with 25 objects within the UNESCO World Heritage Visitor Centre. Visitors to the Centre were invited to select their favorite items as well as complete a survey form recording their preferences such as cost, local manufacture, theme etc. We will also record participant demographics. It is the first systematic survey of the corpus of handicrafts and souvenirs available for sale to visitors and pilgrims within Durham, as well as provide a preliminary understanding of their selection preferences and willingness to pay.