Malta to host international built heritage conference by the Chartered Institute of Building

This November, the highly esteemed UK-based Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) will be holding a conference on built heritage and its preservation in Malta.

The event, running from 1st to 3rd November, offers behind-the-scenes tours of grand, historic buildings currently undergoing restoration in Valletta and surrounding areas.

The CIOB is the world’s largest and most influential professional body for construction management and leadership, with more than 45,000 members worldwide. The organisation, established in 1834, has a Royal Charter to promote the science and practice of building and construction for the benefit of society.

It is hosting the event in collaboration with the Malta Chamber of Construction Management (MCCM), whose vice-president, Karl Azzopardi, is a Fellow of the CIOB. Mr Azzopardi is also the president of the state-owned company managing Malta’s national industrial parks.

The conference will probe the challenge of restoring the physical integrity of old buildings while preserving their heritage significance, making them accessible to the public and adapting them for the impacts of climate change under principles set out by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (Icomos).

Delegates will see first-hand how Icomos principles were applied on the national community art museum, MuŻa, and the Grandmaster’s Palace, currently the Office of the President of Malta.

Other buildings to be explored include the 19th Century ex-Royal Naval Hospital Bighi, which now houses Esplora, an interactive science centre, and the Valletta Design Cluster, sited in a renovated abattoir built in the 1640s.

The event is billed as a “unique behind-the-scenes trip to important historic venues which have achieved a sustainable balance between adaptation to meet modern requirements, whilst maintaining their heritage significance and adapting for the impacts of climate change”.

The CIOB and MCCM signed an MoU to co-operate on education and training in the sector in 2020.