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| Heritage Emergency National Task Force | |
|---|---|
| Name | Heritage Emergency National Task Force |
| Formation | 1995 |
| Type | Coalition |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Leader title | Coordinator |
| Parent organization | National Park Service |
Heritage Emergency National Task Force is a partnership between the National Park Service and the American Institute for Conservation that provides coordination, training, and resources for cultural heritage protection in crises. The Task Force draws on specialists from museums, archives, libraries, historical societies, and conservation laboratories to support communities facing disasters such as floods, earthquakes, and armed conflict. It operates through regional networks, volunteer registries, and published guidance to assist institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, Library of Congress, and state historical organizations.
The Task Force was established in 1995 following lessons from events including the Hurricane Hugo responses, the 1993 Midwest Floods, and international cultural losses highlighted by incidents such as the 1992 Siege of Dubrovnik and the 1972 destruction of the National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Early collaborators included the American Library Association, the Association of American Museums (now American Alliance of Museums), and the Society of American Archivists, responding to needs seen after the Northridge earthquake and fires like the Great Chicago Fire in historical perspective. Over time the coalition expanded to include preservationists from the Getty Conservation Institute, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, reflecting a wider turn toward cultural disaster preparedness after events such as Hurricane Katrina and the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
The Task Force’s mission aligns with priorities articulated by agencies like the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services: to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters affecting cultural heritage. Objectives include rapid needs assessment similar to techniques used by the Red Cross in humanitarian crises, coordination of volunteer specialists as in the Salvage Corps traditions, dissemination of emergency planning guidance akin to publications by the American Institute for Conservation, and advocacy to integrate cultural heritage into broader incident management frameworks such as the National Incident Management System.
Membership spans professional bodies including the American Association for State and Local History, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Library of Congress, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Frick Collection, the Field Museum, and university conservation programs at institutions like Columbia University, University of Delaware, and Queen's University Belfast. The Task Force is administratively housed within the National Park Service and engages federal partners such as the Smithsonian Institution, the National Archives and Records Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and agencies like the Department of the Interior during complex incidents.
Programs include the development of emergency preparedness publications used by organizations like the New York Public Library, the coordination of regional response teams modeled on the National Guard logistics concept, and the maintenance of resource lists for salvage operations informed by techniques from the Getty Conservation Institute. Activities cover emergency planning workshops held in collaboration with the American Alliance of Museums, rapid response guidance disseminated to members of the International Centre for the Study of Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property, and recovery casework in partnership with the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts and the New England Conservancy for Historic Preservation.
Training initiatives feature hands-on workshops derived from methodologies used by the Library of Congress preservation programs, disaster simulation exercises similar to those run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and curricula co-developed with the American Institute for Conservation and the Smithsonian Institution. Preparedness resources are distributed to statewide networks including the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners and the California Preservation Program, and to heritage stewards at sites like Independence National Historical Park, the Alamo, and the Monticello. The Task Force supports creation of emergency plans reflecting standards promulgated in part by the National Archives and Records Administration and professional practice from the Society of American Archivists.
The coalition has provided assistance in responses to major events such as the Hurricane Katrina aftermath in New Orleans, flood recoveries following events like the Midwest Floods (1993), and cultural heritage support after wildfires in regions including California. Case studies include recovery operations at institutions akin to the Historic New Orleans Collection, stabilization of archives similar to those at the Tulane University Special Collections after floods, and international advisories informed by crises like the Iraq War cultural heritage impacts and post-conflict assessments in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Task Force maintains strategic partnerships with organizations including the American Institute for Conservation, National Park Service, American Alliance of Museums, Library of Congress, Smithsonian Institution, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Institute of Museum and Library Services, and nongovernmental entities like the Getty Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Funding derives from appropriations to the National Park Service, grants from foundations such as the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, program support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and in-kind contributions from member organizations like the American Library Association and the Society of American Archivists.
Category:Cultural heritage protection organizations