Terra 2022 World Congress on Earthen Architecture

Originally billed as Terra 2021 World Congress on the Study and Conservation of Earthen Architectural Heritage, the event was postponed to June 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and renamed Terra 2022. It was the second congress held in New Mexico, thirty years after Adobe 90 in Las Cruces.

Terra 2022 drew more than six hundred specialists from around the world in the fields of conservation, anthropology, archaeology, architecture and engineering, scientific research, and site management of earthen architectural heritage, including regional practitioners from the pueblos, tribes, and communities in and around New Mexico engaged in caring for this heritage.

The four-day program convened a diverse group of professionals from a wide range of geographic regions to share their knowledge and experience on the state of the art of earthen heritage study and conservation through presentations, posters, and videos/digital media.

The wealth, variety, and significance of earthen heritage in Santa Fe, as well as across New Mexico, the greater region of the southwestern United States, and northern Mexico, made it an ideal setting for the congress and helped inform and stimulate conversations around earthen heritage. The congress program included site visits in and around Santa Fe, as well as auxiliary exhibits and activities on the theme of earthen architecture organized for the public.

Given the postponement of the congress for one year, and to stimulate conversations around earthen heritage prior to the congress, free monthly virtual events and materials were posted through the Terra 2022 website (see Resources section). From June 2021 to June 2022, earthen architectural heritage specialists from around the world presented virtual blogs, videos, interviews, podcasts, and webinars on the significance of earthen architecture, the people who work and live with earth, and how the field has developed. These events showcased the wealth, variety and significance of earthen heritage in the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico, and internationally.

Optional pre-congress workshops (one to three days, depending on the nature of the topics covered) provided the opportunity for registered participants to acquire hands-on skills and technical training. The workshops were offered from June 3 to 6, 2022.

Optional one-day post-conference tours were offered to Terra 2022 participants on Saturday, June 11, following the conference. These tours visited earthen sites in the region around Santa Fe that demonstrate different approaches to conservation, restoration, and maintenance by communities and conservation professionals in different contexts.

• Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico
• Archeological sites
• Historic buildings and structures
• Urban settings
• Cultural landscapes and cultural routes
• Advances in research
• History of conservation
• Education and advocacy
• Risk and vulnerability
• Care by and for communities

Leslie Rainer, Project Manager; Claudia Cancino, Sara Lardinois, Elizabeth Levine, Benjamin Marcus, Jeanne Marie Teutonico