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Our project | Reunion Island | New Caledonia | Other... |
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| CHAM in New CALEDONIA |
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The site of Teremba Fort and Prison commemorates the sad history of New Caledonia’s penal colonisation and that of the Kanak revolt of 1878. There was a French military establishment at Teremba from 1871 onwards. At the outset an administrative centre for colonialists and prisoners, the fort passed into the hands of the prison administration in 1885 and was later abandoned in 1897, when deportations were stopped. The site consists of ruins of military, administrative and prison buildings. In 1984, a local NGO, « Marguerite » started clearing the site and the municipality then bought it. From 1987 onwards, historical sound and light shows were organised there and in 1989 the province registered the site as a historic monument.
HOW THE PROJECT ORIGINATED
A need for training of youth volunteer project leaders became immediately obvious when the first such projects were organised at Teremba in 1995. Local restoration know-how was particularly lacking. Thus CHAM was invited to provide expert trainers for four operations.
AIMS
- to reinforce training for locals operating in the heritage field
- to help start up heritage training activities (on restoration techniques, the organisation of volunteer projects and school heritage activities), in order that such training courses develop afterwards using purely local resources
- to contribute to the promotion and enhancement of architectural heritage and raise awareness among young people in heritage preservation
In February 1996 a CHAM expert conducted a leadership training course for heritage volunteer projects which was organised by the local NGO, “Marguerite”. The course comprised theoretical modules on the organisation of volunteer projects, the laws protecting monuments, technical and educational guidance and security on work projects, followed by a practical session on Teremba fort (masonry work) and visits of historic sites. CHAM was also able to organise the hosting of three New Caledonian trainees on its projects in France the following summer.
CHAM managed a second training course in restoration techniques in 1997. Fifteen project coordinators learnt how to buttress buildings and restore old masonry through working on a tower doorway and on the ruined walls of the prison and fort.
These two training courses contributed to further development of training in heritage restoration, notably that of a work-training project on traditional stone-hewing and masonry at Teremba. This scheme was organised locally, with local builders as technical trainers, as part of a project aiming to establish a training centre in heritage crafts, in order to facilitate young people’s social and professional integration.
In the field of school teaching on heritage, a CHAM trainer led two “Heritage Class” training sessions for teachers. This French scheme involves a class of schoolchildren being put into contact with a heritage site over a number of days. Through fieldwork and observation, workshops and meeting heritage professionals, these projects aim to help children discover their heritage and become aware of their place in the historic timescale. Following these two training sessions, the provincial academic board set up a specific department for such “Heritage Classes”.
PARTNERS
- Southern Province of New Caledonia
- Territorial office, French Ministry of Culture
- Territorial office, French Youth and Sports Ministry
- The local NGO, “Marguerite”
- Training Institute for Civil Servants and French Education Ministry, provincial board
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