Bermuda To Host Conservation Conference
A successful bid by the Bermuda National Trust has resulted in Bermuda being chosen as the venue for a major conservation conference next year. The International Conference of National Trusts 2019 is expected to include 150 representatives of conservation organisations from around the world.
It is the group’s 18th conference and was last staged in Bermuda 30 years ago. In addition, the fourth Caribbean Conference of National Trusts will take place at the same time to enable national trusts in the region to discuss their specific issues.
The conference takes place from March 27-30, 2019 and will take place in St. George’s, Dockyard and at the Fairmont Southampton Resort.
“We are delighted to have been selected as the venue for the conference,” said Alana Anderson, President of the Bermuda National Trust. “It’s particularly meaningful for us as 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the formation of our Trust.
“In addition, it’s a boost for Bermuda – not just the fact that the conference will bring visitors to our island in March, but because it attests to the fact that we are recognised as an island with a strong history of conservation and respect for our environment.
“We look forward to showing our visitors what Bermuda has to offer and how we have taken care and improved upon the natural beauty of the island. It will provide a valuable opportunity for us to learn from our peer organisations around the world.”
Bill Zuill, Executive Director of the Bermuda National Trust, said the conference will be focused on diversity and inclusion “a topic of relevance to national trusts everywhere; only with the engagement of our communities can we succeeded in our conservation mission and ensure that natural and man-made heritage is preserved ‘for everyone, forever’.”
The conference, titled “Arms Wide Open – Strategies for Engaging with Diverse Communities”, will be based at the Fairmont Southampton Resort with sessions to be held off site including at the Dockyard and St George’s World Heritage Site.
“We have a great deal to discuss, but we want to showcase Bermuda as much as possible,” said Bill Zuill. “By locating the workshops and discussions outside the hotel, we will ensure our visitors get the a full Bermuda experience without compromising all the work we need to do.”
So far, delegates to the conference are signed up from 32 countries – Aruba, Australia, Bermuda, Cameroon, Canada, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, France, Fiji, Guyana, India, Indonesia, Malawi, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Philippines, Russia, St Lucia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Sierra Leone, South Korea, Sri Lanka, St Helena, Tanzania, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, Virgin Islands, United Kingdom, United States and Zimbabwe.
Bermuda residents who wish to take part in the conference can also do so in one of two ways. They can sign up for a full delegates’ pass which includes evening entertainment for $800, or they can sign up for a Bermuda delegates’ pass, which entitles them to attend all daytime events, for $500. Residents can register for the conference at 2019icnt-into.org
Panel discussions and workshops will be led by experts in their field from around the world, with strong representation from Bermuda. Plenary speakers confirmed so far include:
- British curator, historian and filmmaker Gus Casely-Hayford, Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington DC since February, 2018. Awarded the OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List, he is one of the world’s foremost authorities on African art, and the creator of the BBC TV series The Lost Kingdoms of Africa. Dr Casely-Hayford is a former Executive Director of Arts Strategy, Arts Council England, and advisor to the United Nations and the Canadian, Dutch and Norwegian Arts Councils and the Tate Gallery.
- •Marquetta Goodwine became Queen Quet after being elected Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation. A native of St Helena Island, South Carolina, she is an author, preservationist and performance artist. In 2008, she recorded the story of the Gullah/Geechee at UNESCO headquarters in Paris for the UN archives. Her activism began with securing land rights for the Gullah/Geechee people, who often passed land down through the generations without any legal documentation to prove ownership. In 1996, she founded the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition to support the continuation of Gullah/Geechee culture.
- Gail Lord is president and co-founder of Lord Cultural Resources, formed in 1981 to address a need for planning services in the museum, cultural and heritage sector. The company has completed more than 2,200 projects in over 57 countries. Focused on creating value from “the maximisation of cultural resources”, the company has offices in New York, London, Mumbai, Beijing and Toronto, and clients in the public, private, foundation, government and nonprofit sectors.
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