Inaugural World Congress on Maritime Heritage Kicks Off in March

The inaugural World Congress on Maritime Heritage, co-organised by the Consortium for International Maritime Heritage (CIMH) and Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), will be held from March 13 to 15, 2019 at lifestyle destination resort RWS in Singapore. 

The Congress will address the current state of the shipping industry, examine the sector’s past influence on global trade and cultural influences as featured in the world’s maritime museums, illuminate signature undersea archaeological and exploration activities and connect these communities to provide a window into the future.  

“The world today is a legacy of our maritime heritage,” said CIMH Chairman Terry Garcia. “The first World Congress on Maritime Heritage provides an unprecedented opportunity to re-discover our past through the lens of our shared maritime heritage and examine how the factors that affected the past can inform the future.”

The Congress will include key figures in the different sectors and will be opened by former IMO Secretary-General, and Honorary Chairman of the CIMH, Koji Sekimizu. The current Secretary-General of the IMO, the Honorable Kitack Lim, will provide a keynote address on The Ocean as the Pathway to International Commerce and the Global Economy. Key representatives of the shipping, heritage and underwater communities will also be participating in this first ever gathering of thought leadership across the maritime sector.

“Although it is always not well appreciated and easily forgotten, our modern life is created on our past maritime history and maritime heritage. It is particularly so for maritime nations such as Singapore and Japan,” observed Sekimizu. “The World Congress on Maritime Heritage will provide an excellent opportunity for us to recognize our past and consider future developments.”

Other topics being covered in the conference include how the ocean is a pathway to a sustainable future, cultural diversity, and governance. Additional features include “Why we must explore the past to navigate the future,” tourism and maritime heritage in the global context and regional breakout opportunities.

The Congress is being jointly organized by the Consortium for International Maritime Heritage and Resorts World Sentosa with support from the IMO, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, International Congress of Maritime Museums, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, the International Chamber of Shipping and North American Marine Environment Protection Association.  

RWS is also official venue host for the three-day event which will include a program held at the revamped Maritime Experiential Museum, the only one of its kind in Singapore dedicated to the exploration of the iconic Maritime Silk Route. Housing a total of 15 immersive galleries, the attraction holds a combination of state-of-the-art visual projections and multimedia shows. Highlights include the Jewel of Muscat, an Arabian ship which made a tumultuous 138-day voyage from Oman to Singapore in 2010 using ancient navigational methods with a crew of 15, and the Typhoon Theater which simulates a sinking ship in a treacherous storm.

Registration for the Congress is now open. For more information on the program and invited speakers, please visit the World Congress on Maritime Heritage 2019 website (wcmh2019.com).