TerraWatchers, Crowdsourcing, and At-Risk World Heritage in the Middle East

Abstract

Cultural resources, like natural resources, are finite. Every country has cultural resources that reflect local history and prehistory and are vital both economically for tourism and socially as a foundation of cultural identity. This material cultural record is part of world heritage, something recognized by UNESCO since 1972 (http://whc.unesco.org). As archaeological and historical sites occur in relatively restricted areas, they are a limited resource that should be cared for, curated, and preserved for local, national, and international communities. Like natural resources, cultural resources are sensitive to human and natural intervention. Unfortunately, over the past 4 years, more than any other region on the planet, archaeological heritage sites in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East have suffered destruction at an alarming rate. Political instability, war, extreme ideologies, economic downturns, and other factors have led to the wanton destruction of heritage sites. As part of the University of California Office of the President Catalyst Grant project “At-Risk Cultural Heritage and the Digital Humanities,” the TerraWatchers Crowdsourcing platform is being used to involve citizen scientists in monitoring archaeological site destruction in war-torn Syria and Iraq using satellite imagery. This chapter presents an overview of TerraWatchers, how it relies on the expertise of the American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR) Cultural Heritage Initiatives to identify at-risk sites in the region, and how university students in a classroom setting were trained to participate in this digital cultural heritage experiment.