Qatar emerging as regional leader in cultural heritage protection: Expert

Doha, Qatar: Qatar is establishing itself as a regional leader in cultural heritage protection, setting the pace for collaboration across the Middle E...

Doha, Qatar: Qatar is establishing itself as a regional leader in cultural heritage protection, setting the pace for collaboration across the Middle East and North Africa, according to an expert in cultural heritage law.

A Professor of Law at Georgia State University and co-director of its Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth, Professor Ryan Rowberry of Georgia State University in an exclusive interview with The Peninsula hailed Qatar’s role in driving cross-border cooperation on an issue that, he stressed, “does not obey political boundaries.”

“What it really takes is a leader to set the tone and bring people together and that is exactly what Qatar is doing,” he said.   

Rowberry addressed the 4th Doha Conference on Combating the Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property: Crisis Preparedness and Cultural Heritage Protection – Prevention to Recovery, which concluded recently.

The conference, hosted by Qatar National Library (QNL) in partnership with the US Embassy in Doha, gathered global experts to tackle illicit trafficking, disaster preparedness, and the impacts of climate change on heritage protection. Rowberry commended QNL’s “unbelievably great job” in organising the event, calling such platforms “critical” for exchanging knowledge and developing regional strategies.