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On 28 and 29 January 2020, UNESCO New Delhi organized a two-day Consultation Workshop on Disaster Preparedness and Mitigation of intangible cultural heritage in Thrissur, Kerala. The workshop was held in collaboration with the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala, and the Kerala Lalithakala Akademi. 

 

During the workshop, the local partners and concerned communities got a platform to work on a disaster risk prevention strategy to mitigate the impact of future disaster events,  and contribute to the sustainability of the cultural practices. 

The main objective of the workshop was to raise awareness about the importance of disaster preparedness in the face of calamities like the flash flooding of Kerala or Cyclone Fani ravaging Odisha in 2019.   Such natural disasters not only affects infrastructure and livelihoods, but also severely impacts the intangible cultural heritage sector like the performing arts and crafts.

Participants included officials from the Department of Cultural Affairs, conservation experts, and other stakeholders of intangible cultural heritage in Kerala, who actively contributed to the disaster prevention strategy. The koodiyatam artists raised their voice on their precarious condition of performing, especially economically, which is threating the sustainability of Koodiyatam. The participants felt a pressing need to establish a mechanism which could support the Koodiyatam artists, by ensuring a regular income, as more and more koodiyatam artists were leaving the art to get jobs that are more rewarding.    

 

Between June and August 2018, Kerala experienced the worst floods ever in its history since 1924. Working closely with the Department of Cultural Affairs of state Government, UNESCO led the post-disaster needs assessment of the cultural heritage sector. The assessment included an analysis of the effects of the floods on tangible heritage -- monuments and archaeological sites; intangible heritage — traditional crafts, rituals and traditional performing arts; and movable heritage – museums and manuscripts.  

The exercise in capacity building for disaster preparedness is of great significance to India, as it is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world exposed to extreme climates.

 

The two-day workshop was supported by the Heritage Emergency Funds of UNESCO, which also provided assistance in the recovery and rehabilitation of the Koodiyatam sector (on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage) which took a major hit during the 2018 Kerala floods. The floods destroyed costumes, props, musical instruments and the theatre where the artists performed and trained for this art form.