The World Monuments Fund (WMF), an independent nonprofit dedicated to safeguarding cultural heritage, has unveiled its lineup of projects for 2024. This year’s initiatives aim to address the aftermath of devastating earthquakes in Turkey and repair damage in Ukraine amid ongoing conflicts.
In response to global crises, the WMF introduced a new Climate Heritage Initiative, allocating $15 million to fund projects exclusively dedicated to combating climate change. These efforts encompass the restoration of historic water capture systems in India, improving access to reliable water in Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley, and rehabilitating traditional dams and retention ponds in the Andes of Peru.
The WMF has identified two buildings in Antakya, historically known as Antioch, to receive aid: the Antioch Greek Orthodox Church (St. Paul’s Church) and the Antioch Synagogue. Support for WMF’s work at earthquake heritage sites in Antakya has been facilitated by the U.S. Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation and the U.S. Mission to Turkey.
In Ukraine, which has been under Russian invasion for nearly two years, the WMF announced its commitment to restoring the glass dome of the Teacher’s House, a landmark used as the first parliament building of the Ukrainian Republic in 1917 during the Ukrainian War of Independence. Although much of the fledgling Ukrainian Republic was later absorbed by the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991, these restoration efforts aim to preserve a significant piece of the country’s history.
