valuation du Risque Climatique au Koutammakou (Bénin-Togo)
Preserving Legacies combines scientific, indigenous and local knowledge to protect heritage from climate change.
Overview of the project
The UNESCO-listed Koutammakou site is threatened by the effects of climate change, affecting its mud architecture, cultural practices and natural resources.
The project uses art and culture to raise awareness, document changes and pass on traditional knowledge.
This participatory assessment will serve as a scientific and operational basis for sustainable adaptation strategies.
The main objective of this initiative is to assess the vulnerability of the Koutammakou World Heritage Site (Benin and Togo) to climate change, by identifying the major risks and proposing adaptation and resilience strategies adapted to the site's cultural and environmental specificities. It also focuses on the use of art and culture as levers for raising awareness, documenting and supporting adaptation to climate change.
Ongoing research
Juin 2024 à Février 2025
The climate assessment of Koutammakou involved 225 participants and 56 experts, revealing that 75% of the site’s values are highly vulnerable.
Climate scenarios predict a rise in temperatures of up to 5°C by 2080, more extreme rainfall and a significant loss of resources.
These results call for urgent action, combining local knowledge and innovation to preserve the Sikien and its living heritage.
The project used a participatory approach to identify the vulnerability of the Koutammakou region to climate risks.
The Sikien people, cultural practices and natural resources are threatened by erosion, drought and intense rainfall.
Climate scenarios predict major impacts on temperatures, rainfall and available materials between now and 2080.
Mapping the risks will guide adaptation strategies, combining ancestral knowledge and innovation to preserve this heritage.
National Geographic Society
organisation
Preserving Legacies combines scientific, indigenous and local knowledge to protect heritage in the face of climate change.
The programme trains and supports communities in risk assessment and the co-creation of adaptation strategies.
By providing tools, training and networks, it makes heritage resilience a lever for justice, action and innovation.
ICOMOS Climate Heritage Network Corps des Volontaires Béninois Service de Conservation et de Promotion du Koutammakou, Togo Service de Conservation du Koutammakou, Bénin