The World Monument Fund and
American Express have pledged to support the central Italian
town of Amatrice, which was devastated by a deadly earthquake in
2016.
WMF and American Express in particular have announced that
one million euros will fund eight international conservation
projects including restoration work at the Civic Museum Cola
Filotesio in Amatrice.
The projects will involve conservation work on sites at risk
due to natural disasters, climate chance and urbanization that
were included last October in a biannual list drafted by the
WMF.
Every two years the World Monuments Watch, founded with
support from American Express, issues a call to action for
cultural sites worldwide.
"The devastation of Amatrice is difficult to translate into
words", said Joshua David, the president and CEO of WMF.
David noted how almost two years after the earthquake "much
of the town's future still needs to be determined".
The museum Cola Filotesio and its bell tower represent one of
the historic sites at the center of reconstruction, he said.
Over the past 20 years, American Express has donated over 18
million dollars to contribute to the conservation of 166 sites
listed by the WMF in 71 countries.
The financial institution has partnered with other
organizations, contributing with an additional 60 million
dollars to hundreds of conservation projects.
Amatrice was selected last October together with 24 other
sites among 170 locations nominated worldwide.
Other sites that will be receiving funding include the
"Potager du Roi" in Versailles and the archaeological site in
Alban, Oaxaca, Mexico.
Timothy McClimon, president of the American Express
Foundation, said the sites selected symbolize "national and
local identities" whose conservation can have a role in
attracting visitors, breathing new life into communities.
The World Monument Fund has previously selected 114 sites in
need of conservation work in Italy, including in Pitigliano,
Sorano, Manciano and Civita di Bagnoregio, the fortress of
Fenestrelle in Turin, the concentration camp in Fossoli, the
Arch of Janus and Domus Aurea in Rome.
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