The Syrian team of TDA-HPI in cooperating with Arc-k Project and ARTIVE wins "Our World Heritage" competition prize, the projects aim to build capacity for local Syrians to preserve heritage through digital documentation and combat illicit trade. While it was still accessible, several sections of the Ma’arrat al-Nu’man museum were successfully digitally cataloged by The Day After-Heritage Protection Initiative.
Efforts have since pivoted to the World Heritage Site, Ancient Villages of Northern Syria, Syrian Arab Republic. The Arc/k Project has taught Syrians photogrammetry techniques and software processing methods for the digital preservation of cultural heritage in the Dead Cities.
The organizations are adapting their databases and technical workflow to accommodate user needs such as literacy, language translation, and security. They will build a reproducible citizen training and engagement model for identifying and registering heritage. The capacity-building training program covers photogrammetry and digital archiving, which will benefit The Day After and other NGOs on the ground. The project team is advised by Antiquities Trafficking and Heritage Anthropology Research (ATHAR) Project and the Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative; together, this initiative lies at the intersection of heritage monitoring, emergency response, illicit trade, and technology.
