HENB Visiting Researcher at the UNESCO Chair in Information Communication Technologies
Ella Békési, HENB presenting at a class at Università della Svizzera italiana about Digital Technologies in Tourism and the Cultural fields.
Our co-director, Ella Békési has been invited to be a visiting researcher at Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) in Switzerland and represent Heritage Education Network Belize. USI is the UNESCO Chair in Information Communication Technologies to develop and promote sustainable tourism in World Heritage Sites.
The visit lasts one month from 4th to the 31st October 2021 and the goal is to network and learn more about the projects and research being done to improve communications and the use of information technology in the cultural and heritage sectors. We hope to apply this knowledge to our projects in the future and build a strong network of professionals who can aid us in the future.
Lectures & Presentations
Ella gave a lecture to Master students at Università della Svizzera italiana about Digital Technologies in Tourism in Belize – connecting it with the Archaeological and Cultural disciplines and the importance of our work at HENB.
iWareBatik Hackathon Judge
iWareBatik is a project developed and led by Puspita Ayu Permatasari at USI and it aims to save Indonesia’s Batik textile heritage through a Batik Recognition Tool. (You can download the App for Android and iOs). Using digital technology to create a directory of Batik motifs and techniques could be implemented in many other areas of heritage conservation or the safeguarding of traditional lifeways.
The iWareBatik Hackathon involved 33 Indonesian universities and 151 delegates to pitch ideas that make the iWareBatik App more interactive and help educate people about their own heritage in a fun way. The ideas were judged by Puspita Ayu Permatasari and Lea Hasenzahl from USI and Ella Békési.
Research Talks
Ella presented her research at the department’s “Research Talks” about community and tourism engagement around heritage spaces in Belize, specifically focusing on Lamanai Archaeological Reserve and Indian Church Village. The presentation also mentioned our work at HENB.