ANCHISE - ‘Applying New solutions for Cultural Heritage protection by Innovative, Scientific, social and economic Engagement’ aims at offering to European societies efficient methods, knowledge and toolkit to enhance the protection of cultural heritage against looting and illicit trafficking. Crossing the methodology of networking that has proved its efficiency in the H2020 NETCHER project with the innovative results of new technologies developments (3D/photogrammetry for site monitoring, data engineering and AI for border control object identification and heritage collection protection, spectral fluorescence signature for object authentication), ANCHISE will create an operational set of tools applicable for European contexts and replicable in other situations abroad. The aim of the project is to bring coordinated solutions to the key existing needs in the domain of Cultural heritage protection: 1) Understand, 2) Prevent, 3) Act, 4) Repair. ANCHISE will consist of: 1) a hub of social science, politics and economics (for in-depth results likely to lead to structural evolutions in heritage protection), 2) a large-scale evaluation of technologies and needs, 3) a toolkit of innovative solutions, 4) pilot experimentation areas (museums, border control, archaeological sites), and 5) a unique and wide network of practitioners. 9 demonstrations will involve at list 150 practitioners. Guidelines and procedures on the use of ANCHISES tools will be largely disseminated (INTERPOL, PANDORA, institutions in charge of cultural heritage). The Consortium is a strong partnership of leading stakeholders in the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural objects: companies (PARCS, ICONEM, INOV), research centres (FRAUNHOFER, ICCS, Cyprus Institute), universities (French School at Athens, University Lyon 2, University of Poitiers, EUI Florence, Cyprus University of Technology), practitioners (France’s National Police College, ICOM), and associations (Michael Culture).

The EU-LAC-MUSEUMS project directly meets the challenge of fostering EU-CELAC relations by studying the close connections between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) in the field of community museology. To address this challenge, EU-LAC-MUSEUMS assembles a team of leading academics, museum professionals and policy makers elected by the European and LAC Regional Alliances of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) (www.icom.museum). Together, we are committed to exploring the cultural, scientific and social dimensions of EU-LAC relations with a view to “supporting the process of EU-CELAC cooperation outlined by the EU-CELAC Action Plan 2013-2015 in defining a common vision for the years to come”. Through a series of thematic work packages we will pursue the theme of “Museums and Community: Concepts, Experiences, and Sustainability in Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean”. A good deal of research has been carried out into this subject at local, national, and regional levels in both EU and LAC, but a concerted bi-regional investigation is yet to appear. EU-LAC-MUSEUMS will overcome this gap in knowledge by creating parity of esteem and sustainable dialogue and co-operation between academia, museums and communities in each region. It will achieve this goal by pursuing work packages dealing with the cross cutting societal challenges of: a) "Technology and Innovation for Bi-Regional Integration"; b) "Museum Education for Social Inclusion and Cohesion"; c) "Investment and Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Museums”, and d) “Exhibiting Migration and Gender”. In so doing, we will push forward the agenda of the EU-CELAC Action Plan in museum practice and theory.