---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 9 Dec 1997 18:00:33 -0500 From: David Green <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Getty Trust--World Bank Partnership NINCH ANNOUNCEMENT December 9, 1997 An intriguing and powerful alliance was recently announced by the Getty Trust and the World Bank to work together to "support access to, conservation of, and education about cultural heritage." It is perhaps especially interesting in the link seen between the protection and promotion of cultural heritage and the building of sustainable economic development. This relationship had been initiated earlier in specific projects and new projects will be announced. Stay tuned via the Getty Information Institute's impressively re-designed Website <www.gii.getty.edu> as well as this space. David Green ============================================================================= November 4, 1997 Contact: Sylvia Sukop, J. Paul Getty Trust (310) 440-6474 David Theis, World Bank (202) 473-1955 WORLD BANK AND GETTY TRUST PARTNER TO SUSTAIN CULTURAL HERITAGE Organizations Sign Operational Partnership Agreement at the Getty Center Los Angeles, Calif./Washington, D.C. -- The World Bank and the J. Paul Getty Trust today agreed to an operational partnership to sustain cultural heritage in developing countries--to support access to, conservation of, and education about cultural heritage. The agreement was co-signed November 4, 1997 at the Getty Center in Los Angeles by James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank, and Harold M. Williams, President and CEO of the J. Paul Getty Trust. It reflects a growing focus by the Bank in the cultural field and increasing efforts with a number of institutions to integrate cultural heritage as a force in promoting sustainable development; for the Getty, it continues a longstanding commitment to forging broad alliances on a global scale--in conservation, education, scholarship, information technology, and museology. "In every country I have visited," said World Bank President Wolfensohn, "I have seen the importance of a sense of history and a link to the past. For real development to occur, it should be grounded in the culture of the people--drawing strength from their history. I am proud that the Bank and the Getty can help people preserve and pass on their heritage." "We have always worked in close collaboration with other organizations around the world," said Getty Trust President Williams. "Now, by combining the experience and resources of our two organizations, the Getty-World Bank partnership will generate needed attention and support for some of the most important cultural heritage sites that are at risk." The Bank and the Getty Trust will strengthen their activities related to cultural heritage by working together to: * Identify specific operations and projects where the Bank and the Getty can collaborate to protect and sustain cultural heritage--the Getty, for example, providing expertise to Bank-assisted projects; * Jointly undertake pilot projects in cultural heritage and develop a research and evaluation agenda to assess the performance of these projects; * Develop the Bank's knowledge of current international standards of conservation and documentation practices and identify potential applications of Getty expertise; * Mobilize financial and institutional resources for these objectives. In addition to these actions, the World Bank and Getty Trust will engage in staff exchanges to increase awareness of the methods, resources, and operational practices of the partner organization. The relationship between the World Bank and the Getty Trust is not entirely new. Prior to 1997, the organizations had already engaged in two cultural heritage projects, one in Djenne, Mali, and another in St. Petersburg, Russia. The Getty Conservation Institute assisted in the design of the preservation strategy and project implementation for a new $55.5 million urban development project in Mali. Approved by the Bank's board in December, 1996, the project includes a $12.1 million component to preserve cultural sites in the towns of Djenne and Timbuktu. It provides infrastructure, technical assistance, and training to 10 local governments, and preservation of historic sites covering a five-year investment program. Other initiatives now underway, such as the Buenos Aires Exhibition and Project Partnership, and an ambitious, five-country Mundo Maya project, led to today's agreement on a formal partnership between the Bank and the Getty with a commitment to cultural heritage and sustainable development and a clear vision of the vital role both play for present and future generations.