Vietnam Field School

International Field School in Museums & Sustainable Heritage Development
Vietnam Monday 11– Saturday 30 January, 2010

Website: http://www.uq.edu.au/emsah/index.html?page=66307&pid=20385

The International Field School in Museums and Sustainable Heritage Development offered by the Museum Studies Program at University of Queensland aims to provide first-hand experience to graduate students and Professional Development Program participants in locating culture in sustainable development in a rapidly globalising world. Museums and heritage places kinds are considered in the context of sustainable economic, environmental and social development, with a focus on documented case studies and real-life examples in Vietnam. Participants will consider how museums, cultural institutions, and heritage tourism can play a role in the revitalization of local culture and economy, and how international conventions for heritage protection, governance structures, and local area planning intersect within holistic heritage management frameworks. The course provides a critical introduction to cultural mapping, gender and youth issues in community engagement, poverty alleviation and Millennium Development Goals. It also examines the challenges posed by the conflicts between conservation and development, particularly in World Heritage Areas.

This Field School provides practical field experience not only to graduate students and researchers in museum, heritage and environmental studies, practicing museum and heritage professionals, but will also be of interest to those involved in archaeology, anthropology, planning, postcolonial studies, sustainable development and cultural heritage law.

Preliminary Application

Expressions of Interest are being received now:

• A brief Expression of Interest (150 words) stating how you will benefit from the Field School.
• Current Curriculum Vitae. It should include details of graduate qualifications.
• Professional Development Participants may need a supporting letter from a referee or employer at a later date.
• Further documentation of educational qualifications may be required for the admission to the Field School.

Past participants include an equal number of museum and heritage professionals, along with Masters students, Doctoral candidates and Post Doctoral Fellows from major universities in Europe, Southeast Asia, USA, Canada, UK, Australia, China, Turkey, Korea, and Japan. The International Field School is the only one of its kind accredited and offered in partnership with the local, provincial and national cultural and environmental institutions and their respective Vietnamese authorities. It is not a study tour.