The London Festival of Architecture (LFA), the V&A’s Culture in Crisis Programme, International National Trust Organisation and World Monuments Fund can now confirm the breakout sessions for in-person attendance of the upcoming event Future Proofing Heritage: Sustainability and Resilience on 11 June at the V&A South Kensington. The presentations and panel discussion will be hybrid and there is still space to sign up for the event via this link.

Shaping our Future by Vanessa Norwood

The workshop 'Shaping our Future' will explore how using culture in the form of exhibitions and events can present the pressing issues of climate change in an engaging and inclusive way. Together we will consider a story that we would like to tell, and imagine speculative outputs. We can use culture to create platforms for positive change.

As a built environment expert, Vanessa’s work focuses on the central role materials play in building a more sustainable and equitable world.

Vanessa uses culture to showcase the vital role the built environment plays in shaping our future.

Vanessa has commissioned, curated and co-curated over 100 exhibitions celebrating architecture, from the British Pavilion at the 12th Venice Architecture Biennale in 2012 to a series spotlighting the materiality of our built environment at the Building Centre.

Past Proofing by John Darlington

John Darlington will lead an in-depth dialogue on the use of traditional building skills and knowledge as a means to cope with climate change and natural hazards.

An archaeologist and author, John joined World Monuments Fund Britain (WMF) in 2015 and has led on a large variety of projects for the charity ranging from building conservation initiatives in the UK to capacity building in traditional stonemasonry skills for Syrian refugees in Jordan and Lebanon. Prior to joining WMF, he was Regional Director for the UK’s National Trust in North West England. He also served as County Archaeologist for Lancashire, and is a specialist in medieval towns and landscapes, castles and abbeys. John is a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries, a member of the Chartered Institute for Archaeologists, and a Professor of Practice at the University of Wales Trinity St David. He writes regularly for The Evening Standard, amongst others, and has recently published two books with Yale University Press, ‘Fake Heritage,’ (2020) and ‘Amongst the Ruins,’ (April 2023).

Sustainable Museum Practices: A V&A approach by Melissa Painter, Head of Sustainability

This session will explore the V&A’s approach to mitigating climate change through the V&A‘s Net Zero by 2035 ambition and adapting to a changing climate.

This session will examine the key factors driving change within the museum sector, the challenges of climate change mitigation, and the strategy for ensuring the museum is climate ready now and in the future. We will also discuss the challenges and often tensions involved in preserving a listed heritage building while maintaining care for our collections in an international museum.

Melissa joined V&A in September 2022 as Head of Sustainability and is also part of the Executive group of the London Climate Change Partnership. Melissa has over 20 years’ experience in sustainability, climate change and behaviour change in the public, private and charity sector. She has experience in programme management, strategy and policy development on all aspects of sustainability including waste reduction & recycling, water & energy efficiency, biodiversity and active travel both here in the UK and Australia on a local, regional and national level.