Directors' Retreats for Conservation Education

At an April 2000 meeting of conservation educators to consider current and emerging needs in conservation education internationally, one of the most pressing needs identified was for more opportunities for communication among directors of conservation education programs, leading to a better exchange of ideas and information, as well as to strategic thinking across institutions. The Directors' Retreats for Conservation series of meetings was created in response to this need.

• The inaugural 2002 Directors' Retreat in Warrenton, Virginia, focused on the needs and strategies of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works’ newly expanding national program for mid-career professional development. In attendance were directors of academic programs and professional organizations providing conservation education.
• The 2004 retreat in Melbourne, Australia, was attended by twenty-five participants representing thirteen countries. Co-organized with the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation, University of Melbourne, it sought to define the current state of conservation education in the Asia-Pacific region, establish priority areas for further development, and strengthen conservation education through enhanced collaborative effort.
• The 2006 retreat was held in Austin, Texas, in partnership with the American Institute for the Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works and the Association of North American Graduate Programs in Conservation, focusing on the use of web-based technology to achieve teaching and learning goals in conservation education. Participants came from academic programs and conservation organizations in Australia, Canada, Europe, and the United States.
• The 2008 retreat was held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in partnership with UNESCO's Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and the Southeast Asia Ministries of Education Organization for the Protection of Archaeology and Fine Arts, focusing on built heritage conservation and education in Asia and the Pacific and addressing discrepancies between the training received in academic programs and the actual needs of the field. The retreat brought together eighteen participants from Asia and the Pacific region.

The Directors' Retreats reflect the Conservation Institute’s long-standing commitment to the development of conservation education. Since 1987 the Institute has organized meetings, seminars, and related projects with the aim of supporting and advancing the teaching of conservation. In April 2000 an ad hoc meeting of conservation educators was convened in Los Angeles to consider current and emerging needs in conservation education internationally, both for movable and immovable heritage. Among the most pressing was the need for more opportunities for communication among directors of education programs, leading to a better exchange of ideas and information, as well as to strategic thinking across institutions. The Institute responded by initiating the Directors' Retreats, a series of meetings open to directors of academic programs in conservation or heads of conservation organizations whose missions include education.