GLOCAL_Vol16

14/16

12The Smithsonian Cultural Rescue InitiativeProtecting and preservingheritage threatened by naturaldisasters and human con ictsThe Smithsonian Cultural Rescue Initiative (SCRI), based at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, works to protect cultural heritage ̶including collections, sites, and traditions̶from the impacts of natural disasters and human conflicts. SCRI projects include cultural rescue work in Haiti, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Mali, Nepal, The Bahamas, and the U.S., as well as disaster training for heritage colleagues, first responders, and military personnel around the world.In September 2019, three members of SCRI visited the Graduate School of Humanics & Institute of Global Humanics to share SCRI’s research projects with students and faculty at Chubu University. Ms. Liz Kirby, Senior Advisor for Programs and Partnerships, provided an overview of SCRI’s activities and programming, highlighting SCRI’s work in the areas of recognition, resilience, and response. Recognition includes raising awareness to educate policymakers and the public about threats and ways to mitigate the associated risks. Resilience encompasses SCRI’s training activities, which is building a diverse, global network of trained cultural heritage leaders who in turn contribute to their country’s preparedness in preventing cultural damage and loss. SCRI’s response work is done in coordination with locals on-the-ground to help communities stabilize their cultural heritage following catastrophic accidents and to better prepare them for the next impending disaster.Dr. Brian Daniels, SCRI Researcher and Director of Research and Programs at the Penn Cultural Heritage Center, shared the research of the Conflict Culture Research Network (CCRN), which works to study cultural destruction as a form of civilian targeting during conflict; investigate the material remains of cultural destruction in order to understand everyday violence and survival; and undertake the systematic collection and analysis of data about cultural destruction, cultural protection, and post-conflict cultural interventions.Dr. Nana Kaneko, Mellon/ACLS Public Fellow and Program Manager for Cultural Disaster Analysis, presented her doctoral research on the role of musical activities in recovery efforts in Tohoku, Japan following the 3.11 triple disaster. Matsuri festivals and folk performing arts were documented as one of the earliest musical activities to reemerge in coastal areas of Tohoku following 3.11 because of their deep-rooted history and regional distinctions. These activities helped people to reaffirm their identification and gave dispersed communities a reason to regularly reconvene and maintain community ties. At SCRI, Dr. Kaneko is working to raise awareness about the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage from the threats of disasters and conflicts. She is directing a group of interns who are analyzing cultural reactions to disasters by aggregating and interpreting case studies from journal articles that demonstrate the use of cultural practices as recovery mechanisms from the impacts of disasters, broadly defined.