Workshop "Cities of the Future and Heritage Preservation" opens

PSNews - The Embassy of Italy in Hanoi in collaboration with the Hanoi Municipal People's Committee and SCE Project Asia, IUAV of Venice held a workshop named "Cities of the future and heritage preservation" on March 20, at Thang Long Imperial Citadel. 

Attending the event were H.E Antonio Alessandro, Ambassador of Italy to Vietnam; Mr. Michael Croft, UNESCO Vietnam Director; Mr. Michele De Lucchi, Ambassador of Italian design to Vietnam 2019 and over 300 domestic and foreign architect experts. 

Hanoi, as well as many other Asian realities, is facing more and more the challenge to combine the dynamic urban development with the maintenance of its strong cultural identity. 

H.E Antonio Alessandro delivering the opening speech.
H.E Antonio Alessandro delivering the opening speech. 

Over the past few years, thanks to the growing internationalisation of this country, the debate about the conservation of the historical heritage has been the main point within the local institutions’ agenda. Hanoi authorities started to plan new approaches and such a relevant topic for a “smart” development of the Vietnamese capital. 

Speaking at the event, H.E Antonio Alessandro said that,  as part of the 3rd Italian Design Day across the world, the workshop "Cities of the future and heritage preservation" created favourable conditions for Italian and Vietnamese experts to share experience and to present the latest update making the conservation of the historical heritage available to the general public.

Mr. Michele De Lucchi, Ambassador of Italian design to Vietnam 2019 presenting his study on cities of the future.
Mr. Michele De Lucchi, Ambassador of Italian design to Vietnam 2019 presenting his study on cities of the future. 

This meeting focused on a common thought about nature and future of the Hanoi old quarter, through an architectural exercise based on the analysis of one of its most iconic site - Hoan Kiem lake.

The event in Hanoi is part of an ambitious programme, which will touch the most important cities in South-East Asia. The first meeting was held in Burma on September 2018. After Yangon and Hanoi, SCE Projest ASIA will organize a third appointment in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, on October 2019. 

The long-term aim from Mr. Luigi Campanale (CEO of SCE Project Asia) is to “institutionalise” and extend this appointment to all the main Asian cities, by starting collaborations with institutions and private foundations.

On March 21, there will be a closed-door symposium dedicated to private and institutional investors, where thematics regarding the “economic benefits” that come from conservation and reusing of historical goods will be discussed. The event will take place at Sofitel Legend Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, one of the most famous “cases of success” regarding adaptive reuse of a historical building in Vietnam.

By Linh Bui

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