POTENTIAL IMPACT

There is a call for a strong science-driven coordination of global change research in Europe applied to the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage. The proposed research is timely because the most recent predictions from global climate models have yet to be applied at a Pan-European level. The strategic importance to Europe of the proposed research is its focus on reducing disruption of the European built heritage caused by catastrophic events due to climate change, over and above the more familiar cumulative damage caused by daily impact.

There is still a gap between the scientific community and the policy community in their appreciation and understanding of each other. Although scientific expertise is widely acknowledged to be a necessary aspect of governance, widespread scepticism is expressed that this can ever be achieved. The general view is that politicians tend to seek consensus or the most economically advantageous position, even in the face of scientific evidence. For example, the negative impact of industrialization on global change and on the natural and man-made environment is better understood today than it has ever been. In spite of this, ways of influencing governance remain limited. (STOA report on 'Technological Requirements for Solutions in the Conservation and Protection of Historic Monuments and Archaeological Remains', September 2001).