The 11th Seminar of the Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage was held on “Blue Shield and Cultural Property Emergency Rescue: The Role and Importance of the National Committee”

 The 11th Seminar of the Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage was held on “Blue Shield and Cultural Property Emergency Rescue: The Role and Importance of the National Committee”
 In this symposium, discussion focused on the Blue Shield as one approach to urgent efforts in the future to protect cultural properties in Japan based on experience rescuing cultural properties after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake and the Great East Japan Earthquake.
 The keynote speech was given by Corine Wegener, President of the US Committee of the Blue Shield. Ms. Wegener described her experiences founding a national committee of the Blue Shield in the US and emergency assistance efforts by the US Committee of the Blue Shield in Haiti. Other lectures described the current state of emergency responses to protect cultural properties in Japan, such as efforts to rescue both movable and immovable properties after the Great East Japan Earthquake and steps to prevent fires in libraries. These lectures also described related issues.
  A panel discussion featured an extremely important discussion of future emergency assistance efforts in Japan. Questions raised were which types of emergency assistance were needed and what role the Blue Shield has to play in Japan in that regard. The point was made that Japan needs to capitalize on its experience and expertise both in terms of domestic emergency responses and in terms of international cooperation.
 The seminar is the first to bring experts in a range of fields, such as museums, buildings, libraries, historical archives, and film, together in one place to discuss the purpose of the Blue Shield. This gathering represented an important step in terms of the future of emergency activities to preserve cultural properties in Japan.
 The Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage has planned future symposia on a range of topics to facilitate sharing of the latest information.

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