Szalanska, Marcela

Szalanska, Marcela
Research Departments・Position
Cross-regional Studies
Program-Specific Researcher
Area
Cultural property protection, Digital Heritage
Research Interests / Keywords
Cultural heritage management, Heritage policy, Archaeology, Maritime Asia Heritage Survey, GIS
Contact
marcela.szalanska@cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Szalanska, Marcela

I am a Digital Heritage Coordinator for the MAHS. My main research interests include cultural property protection during conflict and disaster, with a particular focus on engagements between the heritage and humanitarian sectors from the perspectives of international law and heritage policy. While International Humanitarian Law, including the 1954 Hague Convention, is integral to the work of organizations such as the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement in contributing to Cultural Property Protection (CPP), other areas of CPP are still being developed.
Prior to my move to Kyoto, I completed an MA in Archaeological Heritage Management at Leiden University. During my study, I was involved in a heritage project in Palestine, and I volunteered with the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE) in Leiden, where I worked on mutual heritage projects between the Netherlands and countries such as India, Sri Lanka, and Australia, and a culture and development project in Afghanistan. I also have previous experience working in the field of cultural emergency response in developing countries.
During my time in Leiden, I began more intensive work on digital recording methods. Subsequently, I completed a post-graduate diploma in GIS and remote sensing at the Military Academy of Technology in Warsaw, focusing on the application of satellite imagery to analyze the destruction of archaeological sites in regions affected by armed conflict.
Before joining CSEAS, I worked on a large multi-site, multi-period archaeological project in the UK. My main tasks involved collection of data, processing, and creation of databases using GIS spatial analysis and technologies. This experience has been particularly valuable to my role as a Digital Heritage coordinator for the Maritime Asia Heritage Survey project here at CSEAS. I hope that the work of the MAHS project can make substantial contributions toward improving the management, protection, and preservation of endangered cultural heritage in maritime Southern Asia.