The College & Community Involvement
Community involvement plays a crucial role in preserving cultural heritage by fostering a sense of ownership, responsibility, and collective action. Local communities often serve as custodians of heritage, possessing invaluable knowledge about the history, traditions, and significance of cultural sites and practices. Engaging these communities in preservation efforts ensures that conservation is grounded in genuine understanding and respect for the heritage.Active participation can take many forms, such as volunteering for restoration projects, advocating for heritage protection, or organizing cultural events that celebrate and raise awareness of local history. Community-led initiatives often attract broader support and resources, amplifying the impact of preservation efforts. Additionally, communities can serve as guardians, monitoring and protecting heritage sites from potential threats like vandalism or neglect.
Education and capacity building within communities further enhance their ability to preserve cultural heritage. By teaching traditional skills, encouraging intergenerational knowledge sharing, and promoting sustainable practices, communities can ensure that cultural heritage remains vibrant and relevant. Ultimately, when communities are actively involved, preservation efforts become more sustainable, inclusive, and impactful. This collaborative approach not only safeguards cultural treasures but also strengthens the social fabric and cultural identity of the community, fostering a deeper connection to the past and a shared vision for the future.
The Jerusalem Multidisciplinary College is situated in the heart of Jerusalem. It is shaped by its surroundings, history, architecture, and demographics, and it influences all those around it. Consequently, the College has long engaged in academic, social, and cultural activities aimed at bridging the gap between academia and the cultural needs of society. Our College sees its goal as a leader in harnessing leading digital technologies, primarily imaging and communication technologies that are developing every day, to meet the needs of the diverse population that makes up all parts of the city. Therefore, the College strives to create and maintain close ties with the broader Jerusalem population across all its communities, religions, sectors, and ages. Considering this, the College regards the local community as a natural partner with great potential in various ways of documenting tradition and heritage and conducting workshops on applying technologies for this purpose.
Alongside the growing awareness of the need to impart knowledge through digital preservation methods, there is an increasing interest among the adult population, retirees, and senior citizens in preserving the memory of their personal and community heritage and traditions. Addressing these needs aligns directly with the college’s strategic plans and ambition to open its doors to courses and workshops for the general public, which will also create new and vital employment and leisure opportunities for the community.