Call for Papers – CHNT31 – CLOSED

The Call is closed!

Thank you to everyone who submitted a contribution to CHNT31!
We are now in the review phase, with our session and round table chairs evaluating the submitted abstracts until 19 June 2026.
After the review process is completed, all authors will receive a notification regarding the outcome of their submission.
We appreciate your interest in CHNT31 and look forward to welcoming many of you to Vienna this November.

Please note that the call for the Digital Creative Award is still open. We warmly encourage submissions of posters, short films and software applications. Participants will have the opportunity to present their work during the conference and, in the best case, gain a publication opportunity through CHNT proceedings.

CHNT31 addresses the practical realities of cultural heritage work – from archaeological and architectural field research to World Heritage management, including but not limited to:

  • Digital documentation
  • AI-supported analysis, interpretation
  • Community engagement
  • Responsible data governance
  • FAIR and open data
  • Virtual reconstruction
  • Computational archaeology
  • 3D data acquisition and management
  • Citizen science

We encourage prospective contributors to review the thematic areas carefully and consider how their current research, field projects, methodological developments, or management experiences may contribute to this dialogue.

If your work engages with the intersection of scientific research, digital innovation and heritage management in real-world contexts, we warmly encourage you to prepare a submission.

The Microsoft CMT service was used for managing the peer-reviewing process for this conference. This service was provided for free by Microsoft and they bore all expenses, including costs for Azure cloud services as well as for software development and support.

Please review the following information carefully to understand the specific requirements for each format.

Sessions are the place to present current research towards the application of technologies in research, management and presentation of cultural heritage. They usually consist of a series of lectures of max. 20 minutes. The contributions can be published as papers or short papers in the proceedings.

The focus of the round tables is more on discussion on current topics in the field, furthered by short talks on the topic of about 5 to 10 minutes, that can be published as short papers in the proceedings.

A panel is used to give short inputs and to discuss and share experiences on an interdisciplinary basis. On the basis of one or two (invited) keynote speeches, different statements are introduced into the panel.

These hands-on trainings present state-of-the-art methods and technologies and can be practiced by all participants of CHNT31. The duration depends on the type of training.

The trainings can only be attended on-site.  All trainings are free of charge for conference participants.

Please register for the trainings by E-mail to: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “training title”).

Digital Creative Award 

The Digital Creative Award is a thematically open call for posters, short films and apps or software applications within the framework of the conference.

All authors are invited to give a short presentation of their project (max. 2 minutes), during which up to 30 seconds of a film may be shown.
Every project (including films and apps/software) must also be accompanied by a poster (see detailed information below).

Participants will select the best presentation as one of the highlights of the conference. The evaluation criteria are:

  • innovation

  • creativity

  • broad impact / public awareness

The posters will be displayed throughout the entire conference.

Please note: If you do not bring a printed poster, your project will not be eligible for the award.

Guidelines for posters

Poster size: A0 (841 × 1188 mm)
Orientation: portrait

Please design the poster space carefully using clearly structured sections, for example:

title, objectives, methodology, input data, case study, results, analysis and conclusions.

  • All sections should be clearly and attractively presented, for example by using frames and colours.

  • Use large lettering with a minimum height of 10 mm (e.g. Arial or Times New Roman).

  • Each section should include a title and a brief explanation.

  • Include enlarged figures or photographs (3–5) with a minimum size of 200 × 250 mm.

  • Author name(s), affiliation and email address(es) should be included on the poster.

SUBMIT HERE!

Please send a digital copy of your accepted poster or a detail (PDF) by October 23, 2026 to info@chnt.at (maximum file size: 2 MB).

Bring your poster in printed form to the conference on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, between 8:00 and 9:00 am to the registration desk (entrance).

CHNT31 Sessions

Browse the sessions below and decide where your abstract would best fit for submission and potential presentation.

Click on “Description” in the expanded section to access and download the detailed session descriptions.

Chairs

Lijun MA, Lingnan University, Hong Kong
Silin LIU, The Palace Museum, China

Description

Current practices in virtual heritage restoration face a critical dual challenge. While the rapid iteration of artificial intelligence and high-fidelity 3D technologies offers unprecedented tools for reconstruction, it frequently fails to balance technology-generated restorative hypotheses with rigorous historical authenticity. Furthermore, entrenched silos among materials science, historical research, and arts technology often result in digital models that lack cross-disciplinary validation.

Addressing these urgent methodological gaps, this session champions a paradigm shift from mere “technical application” to “evidentiary science” in digital heritage conservation. By convening scholars and practitioners across heritage protection, computer science, and the digital humanities, the panel aims to construct a scientific, verifiable, and reproducible virtual restoration workflow.

The discussion centers on three core dimensions. First, it examines how AI-assisted restoration, style transfer, and digital twins can reshape restoration pathways and condition inference. Second, it advocates for “evidence-based restoration,” dismantling silos by integrating materials science, empirical data, and art history to form a robust, interdisciplinary scientific evidence chain. Finally, the session explores value translation and ethical boundaries. It critically assesses the translational pathways of virtual restoration outcomes—from guiding physical conservation to unlocking the value and commercial ecosystems of heritage digital assets. It will also address the ethical frameworks and intellectual property management required for responsible development.

Through a synthesis of frontier case studies, core technology demonstrations, and interdisciplinary dialogues, this session moves beyond abstract theorizing. Instead, it fosters deep methodological reflection and practical consensus, ultimately bridging technological innovation with heritage preservation to drive sustainable, scientifically validated digital humanities development.

Motivation

The primary motivation for this session stems from the widening epistemological gap between rapid technological advancement—particularly in AI and interactive arts technology—and traditional heritage conservation. While new computational tools offer unprecedented capabilities for visualization and simulation, they frequently operate in silos, detached from the rigorous, evidence-based methodologies of the humanities and materials science. This disconnect risks reducing cultural heritage to mere aesthetic digital artifacts rather than scientifically validated historical assets.

Furthermore, there is an urgent need to reframe virtual restoration not just as a retrospective technical exercise, but as a catalyst for AI-enabled social innovation and sustainable development. We are motivated by the imperative to bridge these interdisciplinary divides to establish workflows that ensure both historical authenticity and practical utility. By moving beyond isolated technical applications, we can successfully unlock the enduring value and commercial ecosystems of heritage digital assets.

Ultimately, this session is driven by the desire to foster a co-created, holistic paradigm—fusing innovative design practice with cultural preservation to educate the next generation, bridge global cultural narratives, and sustain heritage in the digital era.

Target Audience

  • Researchers and frontline conservators in cultural heritage protection.
  • Technology professionals in computer vision, AI, and graphics focused on cultural heritage applications.
  • Scholars in art history, archaeology, history of science, and digital humanities.
  • Policymakers, project managers, and industry practitioners in cultural heritage digitization and creative economies.

Keywords

Simulated Heritage Restoration; AI-Assisted Restoration; Evidence-Based Reconstruction; Digital Heritage Ethics; Virtual Restoration Workflow

Chairs

Ruth LIBERTY-SHALEV, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Yael ALEF, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Israel

Description

Cutting edge digital technologies and tools are developed in academies, research centers and Tech firms around the world, expanding the horizons of our ability to acquire and produce knowledge. The field of heritage is no exception to this phenomenon, with advanced tools for mapping, photography and survey constantly being developed, released and improved.
However, the migration of this newfound wealth of technologies into the on-site practice of heritage professionals is far from simple. Integrating new technologies presents both conceptual and practical challenges. Conservation work is inherently cautious, grounded in principles of minimal intervention, reversibility, and respect for material authenticity. Digital tools- such as laser scanning, photogrammetry, HBIM or GIS mapping – often promise efficiency and precision, yet their implementation requires through training, infrastructure, and long-term data stewardship strategies that many conservation projects lack. Technologies require machinery which in turn requires electricity, and on active sites, conditions are rarely ideal: surfaces are unstable, exposure to weather complicates the deployment of sensitive equipment, time and electricity are limited. Clipboards, sketching and field notes must make way for more advanced devices, leaving heritage professionals to balance the time and attention required for efficiently using new technology against time invested in close observation of heritage itself. Practitioners are often so encumbered by the “techie” demands of new technologies, that they avoid employing them altogether.
Our panel wishes to explore and present successful, simple and accessible applications of technology into heritage work. Examples will include the use of tablet or mobile phone-based condition surveys linked to GIS platforms, drone or site photography for preliminary modelling, AI aided value assessments, and more. All examples presented in this session will emphasize the migration of technologies from research into practice, and the potential of technology, when carefully integrated, to help and support heritage professionals in improving the quality and efficiency of their field work rather than replacing traditional conservation expertise.

Motivation

The potentials of academic research and the new insights it offers are often exiting and promising, yet far removed from the multi faceted realities, tme constrains and limited resources of practice, whether on-site or in the office. This gap draws a divide between the two worlds which begs to be carefully looked at and challenged. We are looking for examples of modestly integrated technologies which enhances routine heritage processes and demonstrates the value of applying technology without overwhelming conservation practice and practitioners.

Target Audience

Heritage professionals, architects, archaeologists, heritage academics, students, heritger officials and decision makers

Keywords

Research; practice; technological integration; heritage professionals;

Chairs

Michele RUSSO, Department of History, Representation and Restoration of Architecture (DSDRA), Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
Valeria CERA, Department of Architecture (DiARC), University of Naples Federico II, Italy

Description

Digital survey technologies have enabled increasingly accurate and detailed documentation of cultural heritage, fundamentally transforming the ways in which historic and architectural assets are recorded, represented, and analysed. Photogrammetry, laser scanning, mobile mapping systems, and advanced sensing technologies now allow the generation of large volumes of high-resolution three-dimensional data, multispectral imagery, georeferenced spatial information, and heterogeneous metadata. This expanding informational ecosystem offers significant opportunities for research, conservation, and valorisation, while simultaneously raising challenges in terms of data management, interoperability, and long-term sustainability.

The contemporary challenge no longer lies solely in data acquisition or metric accuracy, but in integrating digital outputs into structured systems capable of organising, connecting, and making multidimensional information accessible and queryable. The production of accurate 3D models represents only the initial stage of a broader process that should lead to the development of information infrastructures able to support interdisciplinary analysis, critical interpretation, and evidence-based decision-making.

This session aims to explore integrated workflows that connect digital survey, modelling, data management, and knowledge structuring, overcoming the fragmentation that often characterises traditionally separated operational phases. Contributions addressing the entire data lifecycle, from on-site survey to the development of interoperable and dynamic information systems, are welcome. Topics may include HBIM approaches, integrated GIS, Digital Twins, knowledge modelling, ontologies, and collaborative platforms. Interest will be given to methodologies that promote standardisation, data sharing, and reuse in interdisciplinary contexts.

Special attention will be devoted to applied case studies, replicable methodologies, and operational strategies that clearly demonstrate how the integration of geometric data and knowledge systems can enhance preventive conservation, long-term monitoring, strategic management, and the valorisation of Cultural Heritage. The objective is to highlight how a systemic and integrated approach can transform digital documentation from a purely technical representation into a true cognitive infrastructure capable of supporting governance, planning, and informed decision-making processes.

Motivation

In the current context, characterised by an increasing production of digital data in the Heritage sector, there is a pressing need to overcome the fragmentation between survey, modelling, and information management. Without integrated workflows and interoperable models, data risk remaining isolated, difficult to reuse, and ineffective in supporting decision-making processes.

This session responds to the need to promote systemic approaches capable of transforming digital documentation into knowledge infrastructures. In line with the CHNT approach, oriented towards practical applications and real-world contexts, the objective is to foster dialogue between methodological research and operational implementation, highlighting solutions that generate tangible impact in professional practice and Heritage governance.

Target Audience

The session explores the potential of new digital survey, HBIM, GIS and informative platform for data analysis, management, interpretation and communication. Authors are encouraged to submit papers presenting original and innovative studies that address the new challenges and implications of integrated workflows. The target audience includes:

  • researchers in Digital Heritage and 3D documentation
  • specialists in photogrammetry and laser scanning
  • experts in HBIM, GIS, and information systems
  • scholars in semantic modelling and interoperability
  • heritage managers and conservators
  • developers of Digital Twins and collaborative platforms
  • professionals involved in Heritage management and planning

Keywords

integrated workflows; digital survey; knowledge systems; interoperability; HBIM and GIS integration

Chairs

Anna KAISER, University for Continuing Education Krems, Austria
Raffaela WOLLER, University for Continuing Education Krems, Austria

Description

Cultural trails are more than linear connections between archaeological sites; they are narrative spaces in which history is interpreted, negotiated, and collectively experienced. This session explores how cultural routes and trails can function as dynamic platforms for heritage interpretation, storytelling, and community engagement.

At its core lies the question of how archaeological and historical knowledge can be translated into place-based, inclusive, and accessible narratives without diminishing scholarly complexity. Walking and cycling trails, digital applications, augmented reality elements, storytelling modules, maps, and participatory formats all offer opportunities to communicate heritage in innovative ways. However, such trails are only viable and sustainable when developed with the awareness, engagement, and active support of local communities.

The session presents conceptual frameworks for narrative trail development alongside practical case studies. It introduces both digital and analogue interpretive tools and discusses strategies for community-driven participation in research, storytelling, and site activation. Particular attention is given to inclusive and barrier-free approaches, addressing accessibility in physical environments, digital design, and narrative construction.

By connecting theoretical perspectives on interpretation and heritage storytelling with hands-on project experience, the session invites critical reflection on transferable methods and tools for comparable heritage, landscape, and route-based projects. It also examines how cultural routes can serve as instruments for sustainable tourism, regional development, and co-creative knowledge production.

Through international examples and interdisciplinary dialogue, the session aims to foster exchange on best practices, shared challenges, and innovative solutions in narrative trail development.

Motivation

The session is rooted in the ongoing Interreg projects Roman Trails and Roman Legacy, which focus on interpreting and narrating Roman heritage through narrative cultural routes and trails.

Roman Trails concentrates on the less widely known Roman presence north of the Danube in Lower Austria and in South Moravia, highlighting cross-border heritage and community-driven interpretation. Roman Legacy expands this perspective to the whole Danube region with a focus on the (future) UNESCO World Heritage Danube Limes and its hinterland.

Both projects demonstrate that interpretation, storytelling, and community engagement are inseparable elements of successful cultural route development. Strong local participation is not an optional add-on but a structural prerequisite. The projects operate within international partnerships that bring together diverse community-driven approaches, local and national frameworks, and varying heritage management challenges.

The proposed session provides an academic platform to critically discuss these experiences, compare methodological approaches, and explore how narrative trails can be implemented as inclusive, research-based, and socially embedded heritage infrastructures across different regions.

Target Audience

The session addresses scholars, heritage professionals, and practitioners working in the fields of digital heritage, archaeological interpretation, cultural heritage management, and public history. It is particularly relevant for researchers and project managers involved in cultural routes, landscape archaeology, heritage tourism, and community-based heritage initiatives.

The session also invites participation from experts in digital humanities, museum and exhibition design, accessibility studies, and sustainable regional development. Representatives of public authorities, NGOs, and cultural institutions engaged in transnational cooperation and Interreg-funded projects will find valuable methodological insights and opportunities for exchange.

By bridging theory and practice, the session aims to foster dialogue between academic researchers, digital developers, site managers, and community stakeholders working at the intersection of heritage interpretation, storytelling, and participatory cultural infrastructure.

Keywords

Narrative trails; Cultural routes; Heritage interpretation; Community engagement; Participatory heritage

Chairs

Theodora MOUTSIOU, University of Cyprus, Cyprus
Hendrik ROHLAND, German Archaeological Institute, Germany

Description

Archaeological fieldwork is implemented using a range of methods using diverse technologies available at that specific time. These get arranged to serve best recording practices as well as conceptual frameworks associated with a given fieldwork philosophy. Modifying such practice influences the whole investigation process. The adoption of new instruments/tools and approaches for recording and managing archaeological data has always been a complex issue, affecting both practice and theory. Especially complex are issues pertaining to the process of digital “transformation” of field practices that were born analogue, as well as the seamless integration of digitally born projects into existing philosophies of practice and legacy datasets. GIS, CAD, GPS, digital photography, 3D recording, etc. are nowadays considered common practices, while more emerging technologies, e.g. 3D GIS and AI supported workflows, are often being explored in new field projects. But how does it all mesh together, especially when dealing with long-term projects, and how does one deal with remote locations and challenging field conditions when access to cutting-edge infrastructure is compromised? Are we aware of the impact this transformation has on the questions we ask and the narratives we create?

This session considers the impact of technology in archaeological fieldwork aimed at addressing issues such as:

  • Born-digital fieldwork recording workflows, including (mobile) GIS and 3D approaches
  • Handling changing documentation standards and media in long-term projects
  • Digital tools under challenging field conditions
  • Creation, dissemination and reuse of FAIR Data from the field or legacy data
  • Data stories/narrating with data: Presentation of archaeological data for diverse audiences
  • Technological biases and imbalances
  • Impact of digital field recording and data processing on research questions and design
  • Countering the loss of genuine scientific engagement due to rapid as-is-recording

Motivation

In archaeological fieldwork (surveys, excavations), centuries of experimentation have resulted in the development of a set of rules, represented in our recording systems, on-site and post excavation protocols, and our paper (analogue) and digital data structures, that allow for efficient recording practices. Recent methodological advances are modifying archaeological practices which, in turn, impact the entire archaeological investigation process. The methods, readiness of existing digital tools and challenges of this “digital transformation” in archaeological field practice and how they mesh with our existing disciplinary philosophies of practice and preconceived concepts of “what an excavation should be” (Taylor and Dell’Unto 2021, p.483) form key aspects of an important dialogue to be had amongst the archaeological community.

Target Audience

Field archaeologists (researchers/academics), professional archaeologists and students of archaeology, geoscientists (geospatial analysts, geophysicists etc), data analysts, digital humanities practitioners

Keywords

fieldwork; archaeological documentation; epistemology; data modeling; digital archaeology

Chairs

Martina TROGNITZ, ACDH, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
Brigit DANTHINE, ÖAI, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria
Helmut SCHWAIGER, ÖAI, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria

Description

Over the past decades, archaeology has produced growing amounts of digital data through the increased use of digital documentation and recording methods. However, turning this data into robust archaeological knowledge often lags behind acquisition. This is where computer applications and the use of quantitative methods can help in processing the available huge and complex material record to advance our knowledge about the past.

The focus of this session lies on the analysis, modelling, and interpretation of existing datasets that demonstrate how computational methods, such as statistics, spatial analysis (GIS), network analysis, machine learning, and semantic technologies, aid in translating measurements into interpretation and ultimately can deliver transparent, validated insights that matter for research and heritage management.

We welcome case studies, comparative evaluations and methodological papers illustrating the expertise required for computational approaches and their potential to inform more robust archaeological interpretations when applied appropriately. We particularly value contributions that shift the focus from acquiring data to interpreting it, rather than merely creating digital surrogates:

  • How do we extract knowledge from already-collected datasets?
    • Conceptual modelling and semantic technologies for interoperability
    • Integration of heterogeneous sources
    • Moving between field recording, data processing, analysis, and interpretation
  • Statistical and quantitative analysis for archaeological interpretation
    • Treatment of uncertainty, vagueness, or fuzziness
  • Spatial modelling and GIS
    • Sensitivity to parameters and scale
  • Network analysis of archaeological entities and processes
  • Machine learning
    • Methods, bias, error rates, explainability, and limits in practice
  • Reproducibility and transparency: FAIR data, open workflows, metadata and provenance
  • Validation strategies: ground truth, cross-validation, sensitivity analyses
  • Digital humanities methods application to archaeology
  • Critical reflections and lessons learned, including negative results: evaluating where and why digital methods succeed or fail in practice

Motivation

Although the archaeological community has witnessed exponential growth in digital data collection capabilities, interpretive methodologies have not kept pace. Without proper analysis, massive datasets, despite meticulously captured, risk becoming digital dust. This session addresses the need for methodological rigour in computational applications to archaeology, shifting the focus from acquisition to comprehensive analysis of accumulated digital evidence to gain a deeper understanding of the human past, rather than merely amassing digital surrogates.

Target Audience

Researchers, heritage practitioners, students, and institutional representatives working at the intersection of archaeological fieldwork, quantitative analysis, and digital methods.

Keywords

quantitative methods; data interpretation; digital humanities methods; computer applications; archaeology

Chairs

Florian THIERY, Research Squirrel Engineers Network, Germany
Nadine ALPINO, The State Library of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Andreas NOBACK, TU Darmstadt, Germany

Description

Over the past decades, open knowledge initiatives such as Wikipedia, Wikidata, and OpenStreetMap have profoundly shaped how cultural knowledge is created, shared, and sustained. In parallel, the Cultural Heritage domain has developed increasingly sophisticated approaches to Research Data Management (RDM), semantic modelling, and computational analysis. CHNT31’s focus on “Getting Dirty – Back to the Roots of Cultural Heritage Work” offers an ideal opportunity to reflect on how these trajectories intersect under real-world conditions also while thinking of Tim Berners-Lee [1].

This session explores open cultural data as a practical, methodological, and ethical framework, rather than an abstract ideal. It deliberately builds on established RDM perspectives while shifting the focus towards situated practice, community involvement, and long-term sustainability. Particular attention is given to the productive tension between Open Science, FAIR principles, and responsible data governance, explicitly acknowledging that FAIR data is not necessarily open, and that open data is not automatically FAIR.

We invite contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

  • Data Documentation and Knowledge Graphs: Innovative approaches to data capture, qualification, and integration using semantic frameworks such as CIDOC CRM, RDF, and graph-based technologies (LPG/HIN), supporting sustainability and FAIR principles.
  • Computational Approaches and FAIR4RS: Applications of research software, small R/Python scripts, and domain-specific tools for data processing, analysis, and interpretation, recognising software both as a key FAIRification tool and as a research output in its own right.
  • AI Integration: Practical strategies for combining AI techniques with open and semantically enriched datasets to support data integration, discovery, reasoning, and interpretation.
  • Citizen Science and Open Knowledge Platforms: Frameworks for integrating public and volunteer contributions into Cultural Heritage research through open platforms (e.g. Wikidata, OpenStreetMap), addressing opportunities, limitations, and governance challenges.
  • Legacy Data and Sustainability: Pragmatic approaches to FAIRifying and preserving legacy datasets within open and semi-open environments.
  • Best and Worst Practices: Honest accounts of successes and failures in implementing open, semantic, and community-driven data workflows.

[1] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/sep/28/why-i-gave-the-world-wide-web-away-for-free

Motivation

This session is motivated by the observation that many contemporary practices in Cultural Heritage research—semantic modelling, Knowledge Graphs, FAIR-aligned data management, community-driven documentation, and open research software—are rooted in principles that shaped the early open Web and its knowledge infrastructures. Milestones such as 25 years of Wikipedia and Wikidata provide a timely opportunity to revisit these foundations not as historical artefacts, but as ongoing practices that continue to influence how cultural heritage data is produced, shared, and sustained.

In heritage research, openness is rarely straightforward. Field conditions, heterogeneous and legacy data, ethical responsibilities, legal constraints, and long-term sustainability challenge idealised notions of Open Data. At the same time, platforms such as Wikidata and OpenStreetMap demonstrate that open, collaborative, and semantically structured approaches can function robustly under real-world conditions precisely because they evolved pragmatically and community-driven.

The motivation of this session is to bring these perspectives together and to reflect on open cultural data as a situated practice that intersects with Research Data Management, semantic standards, computational workflows, and Research Software Engineering. By explicitly addressing the productive tension between Open Science and FAIR principles—acknowledging that FAIR data is not necessarily open, and that openness alone does not ensure reuse or sustainability—the session aligns closely with CHNT31’s focus on “Getting Dirty” and returning to the roots of Cultural Heritage work through critical, practice-oriented reflection.

Target Audience

The target audience for this session will primarily include the following groups, but is not limited to:

  • digital archaeologists, computational archaeologists (archaeological computer scientists), digital humanists
  • researchers in the Cultural Heritage domain
  • researchers from the natural sciences, geosciences, geodesy (including geoinformatics), conservation sciences
  • Research Data Management (RDM) staff
  • Citizen Science practitioners

Keywords

Research Data Management; FAIR Principles; Artificial Intelligence; Data Modelling; Research Software Engineering

Chairs

Marc GRELLERT, Technical University Darmstadt, Germany
Fabrizio I. APOLLONIO, Università di Bologna, Italy
Emanuel DEMETRESCU, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche – Istituto di Scienze del Patrimonio Culturale, Italy

Description

The topic in the session is to investigate the question of what are scientific and sustainable criteria for virtual reconstructions of historical buildings and urban complexes.

The starting point for this topic can be summarized as follows: the number of virtual reconstructions is growing worldwide, but it is usually impossible to determine their scientific value. Too little discussion takes place on what constitutes scientific rigour and quality, or on what forms of representation, documentation, and description are available to demonstrate the credibility of a hypothetical reconstruction. Documenting the decision-making processes, i.e., explaining why a reconstruction has taken a particular form and what sources and assumptions it is based on, is still the exception, even though this has been required for many years, starting with the London Charter.

Without such documentation, a virtual reconstruction is not, strictly speaking, scientifically valid. At the same time, there is a high risk that the knowledge underlying the reconstruction will be lost. Many reconstructions are financed by public funds, which should have a lasting impact. However, if the assumptions and the steps that led to the reconstruction result are no longer accessible after a certain period of time, it will be necessary to invest public funds again to clarify the scientific starting point in case of an update of the same reconstruction.

Participants are invited to contribute to this session by addressing the issues of documentation, uncertainty, credibility, reliability and plausibility, the use of standards (e.g. standardised vocabularies), the use of meta- and paradata, and issues related to compliance with the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), which set the conditions for making the scientific quality of reconstructions verifiable.

Motivation

This session departs from the premise that virtual reconstruction is not merely a tool for dissemination or communication, but an integral part of the research process itself — a form of knowledge creation that demands the same scholarly rigour applied to other research activities.

This urgency is reinforced by ongoing European initiatives — including the European Collaborative Cloud for Cultural Heritage, Europeana, and projects such as 3D-4CH — which are actively seeking formal frameworks to assess and validate the quality of digital reconstructions.

Achieving these goals also requires a cultural shift in how reconstructors are trained and recognised: fostering transdisciplinary skills that bridge archaeology, architecture, and digital modelling, and strengthening the scholarly profile of scientific reconstruction as a professional practice.

Target Audience

Researchers, museums, creators of reconstructions, stakeholders of historical sites and tourism, and persons involved in discussions on standardisation, vocabularies, and ontologies.

Keywords

Researchers; museums; creators of reconstructions; stakeholders of historical sites and tourism; persons involved in discussions on standardisation; vocabularies; ontologies

Chairs

Helena SEIDL DA FONSECA, Kuratorium Pfahlbauten – National Management for the UNESCO World Heritage Site „Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps” in Austria, Austria
Julia LÄNGAUER, Center for Museum Collections Management – University for Continuing Education Krems, Austria
Jessica W. COOK HALE, Seismic Mapping Research Assistant – Submerged Landscapes Research Centre at The University of Bradford, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Description

In archaeological research and museum practice, public participation has long played an important role. In recent years, however, Citizen Science—the active involvement of interested citizens in scientific processes—has gained significant momentum. Digital technologies increasingly enable large-scale data collection in collaboration with Citizen Scientists, opening up new research opportunities while also introducing new methodological challenges.

A central tension emerges between two key objectives: on the one hand, participation formats should be as accessible, intuitive, and low-threshold as possible; on the other hand, the collected data must meet high standards of quality, transparency, and long-term usability. Developing robust strategies for data acquisition, validation, and management therefore becomes a crucial factor for the success of community engagement projects.

This challenge is particularly evident in projects that work with large volumes of data and receive numerous contributions from the public. In such cases, providing continuous individual guidance and feedback to Citizen Scientists can quickly exceed available organizational and personnel resources. This session invites contributions that critically engage with these processes through concrete case studies.

We seek presentations of archaeological or museum-based community participation projects that employ digital tools for data collection, management, or analysis. Contributions are encouraged to address not only successful approaches but also obstacles, complications, and lessons learned during project development and implementation.

A further focus of the session is the practical application of the ten principles of Citizen Science defined by the European Citizen Science Association. To what extent can these principles be implemented in real-world projects? Where do they reach their limits, and which adaptations prove necessary in everyday practice?

The session aims to foster an open exchange of practical experiences, highlight shared challenges, and discuss concrete solution strategies for working with Citizen Scientists in archaeological data collection.

Motivation

The questions addressed in this session and the topics proposed for discussion emerge directly from our own project work and practical experience in collaborating with citizen scientists. In line with the motto of CHNT31, we aim to “get our hands dirty” by openly addressing not only successful approaches, but also the challenges, limitations, and structural problems that arise in community engagement projects.

Rather than focusing solely on best-practice examples, this session explicitly encourages critical reflection on obstacles, unintended effects, and missed opportunities, as well as on strategies that proved ineffective or required revision. By sharing these experiences, we seek to contribute to a more realistic and practice-oriented discourse on community participation in archaeological and heritage contexts.

Target Audience

This session is aimed at practitioners and researchers who have experience working with citizen scientists in the context of data collection, documentation, and database development. It addresses individuals involved in the design, implementation, or evaluation of participatory projects that rely on public contributions to archaeological or heritage-related datasets.

We particularly welcome submissions from a broad range of fields, including digital archaeology and heritage projects, museums, monument preservation, and academic research. The session is intended for those interested in critically reflecting on participatory data workflows, quality assurance strategies, and the practical implications of scaling Citizen Science initiatives.

Keywords

citizen science; community engagement; digital heritage; data quality and validation; data acquisition

Chairs

Jane JANSEN, National Historical Museums (Sweden) Intrasis, Sweden
Stephen STEAD, Paveprime Ltd, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Description

This session focuses on how archaeological archive data is reused in practice.

Over many years large quantities of archaeological documentation have been created and archived. This includes excavation records, reports, drawings and in a few cases oral history and local tradition. Much effort has gone into preserving this material and making it accessible. However, access does not automatically mean that data can easily be reused.

Archive staff and data custodians often face practical problems when data is reused. Documentation may be incomplete, inconsistent, or created using older methods and systems. Important context may be missing, unclear or difficult to understand. These problems become even greater when different types of material are combined, such as excavation archives and oral history linked to sites or landscapes.

The FAIR principles are often used to describe good data practice, but reuse also depends on how archives are organised, described and managed over time. Decisions made during archiving and curation strongly affect what future users can understand and do with the data. Standards and models such as CIDOC CRM and CRMarchaeo can help, but they also require time, resources and expertise and are not always the only solution.

This session invites presentations that show real examples of reuse from an archival point of view. We are especially interested in critical and practical contributions from archives, museums and heritage organisations that work with long-term archaeological documentation.

Topics may include:

  • Reuse of older excavation or survey archives
  • Practical problems with legacy data
  • Combining archive data with oral history or local knowledge
  • How archival decisions affect later reuse
  • Experiences of supporting researchers who are reusing archive material

The aim of the session is to share practical experience.

Motivation

Archaeological archives are increasingly expected to support new research questions, regional syntheses, and long-term reuse of data. At the same time, archive staff and data custodians are asked to enable reuse of material that was created under very different recording practices, technical systems and assumptions. This creates a growing gap between what archives can provide and what researchers expect to do with archived data.

While much attention has been given to digital access and standards, less space is usually given to the practical realities of reuse from an archival perspective. Many reuse projects struggle not because data is unavailable, but because context is unclear, documentation is uneven or earlier decisions made during archiving limit what can be understood or combined later.

This session is motivated by the need to share practical experience from archives, museums and heritage organisations that work with archaeological documentation over long time periods. By focusing on real reuse situations — including both successes and problems — the session aims to support better dialogue between archives and data users and to highlight the central role of archival practice in shaping future archaeological knowledge.

Target Audience

Archive professionals, museum and heritage staff, archaeologists responsible for documentation and researchers who work with archived archaeological data.

Keywords

Archaeological data; data reuse; legacy data; documentation; oral history; FAIR; CIDOC CRM

Chair

Nikola BEIM, Independent, Austria

Description

This session proposes the digital palimpsest as an active spatial database for heritage preservation. Rather than understanding documentation as a record that ends in the archive, the session frames the digital palimpsest as a layered data environment that can be used to compare, query, and generate new knowledge from multiple recorded states of a site or monument. Built from repeated non-contact documentation, the digital palimpsest makes temporal change visible and operational. It allows documented layers to be read individually and together in order to analyse material transformation, detect change over time and support future preservation decisions under real site conditions.

The session invites case study papers that demonstrate how a digital palimpsest functions as an active database in practice. The focus is on projects in which layered documentation does more than represent a monument and instead becomes a working instrument for producing new knowledge. Relevant contributions should show how multiple recorded states are structured, compared and interpreted to reveal patterns of change, identify gaps in the record or support preservation scenarios.

The session is especially interested in how the digital palimpsest can generate new data through AI-assisted processes in two directions: retrospectively, by reconstructing or inferring missing states from existing layers and predictively, by using accumulated data to model future conditions, risks or interventions. Contributions should therefore make clear how the database is organised, how temporal layers are analysed, what kinds of new outputs are generated and how uncertainty, data quality and attribution are addressed. The session prioritises papers in which the digital palimpsest is treated as an evolving preservation tool that actively stores, analyses and produces information. The aim is to move beyond heritage documentation as a static representation and to examine how layered heritage data can become a knowledge-generating instrument for preservation and decision-making.

Motivation

The motivation for proposing this session is to connect case studies across various time periods, scales and regions. The concept of the digital palimpsest was developed in the dissertation “Architecture of Memory: Monuments Beyond Digital,” completed at the Institute of Architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna in 2024. In this framework, the digital palimpsest is defined as an evolving archive that stores documented layers of a monument and produces new information through their comparison, overlay and analysis.

The concept is extended by proposing that the digital palimpsest can generate new data with the help of AI, both retrospectively by reconstructing missing past states and predictively by modelling future conditions, risks or interventions. This session brings that argument into a more specific methodological field relevant to CHNT. It focuses on how layered documentation can function as an operative knowledge system rather than as a static representation.

The aim is to bring together papers that show how digital palimpsests as active databases are structured and used to generate new knowledge from temporal heritage data, while addressing the responsibilities that come with machine-generated outputs, including uncertainty, provenance, attribution and the presentation of generated results as contestable scenarios rather than fixed evidence.

Target Audience

The session is targeted at doctoral students, researchers, as well as practising architects, preservationists and other experts from associated fields who work in real on-site conditions and use layered documentation to support analysis, interpretation, simulations and predictions.

Keywords

Palimpsest; archive; prediction; database; temporality; documentation; generative AI

Chair

Lance OWEN, Vienna University of Economics and Business, United States of America

Description

Digital twins are rapidly becoming central components of how cultural heritage institutions represent, interpret, and manage historic sites. Increasingly, these technologies are deployed not only to enhance audience engagement but also to respond to mounting pressures related to overtourism, climate exposure, and long-term sustainability. While digital twins promise new forms of access and resilience, their contribution to heritage value is far from guaranteed. When poorly designed or weakly contextualized, they risk producing placeless, ahistoricized experiences that undermine authenticity, institutional credibility, and public trust.

This session will convene researchers and practitioners to examine digital twins as orchestrated, place-based interventions operating under environmental, social, and reputational constraints. Using examples from high-pressure heritage contexts, the session explores how design decisions, institutional framing, and integration into broader visitor journeys influence whether digital twins support or erode sustainable value creation. Rather than prioritizing technical fidelity alone, the discussion will foreground the relationship between digital representations and physical sites, and the managerial choices that govern how digital twins complement, substitute for, or reshape embodied heritage experience.

Conceptually, the session will bring together perspectives from digital heritage, museum studies, human geography, experience-based value creation, and information systems. The goal is to move beyond siloed technical or disciplinary debates and toward a shared understanding of how digital twins can be aligned with place-based authenticity, resilience, and long-term stewardship. The session will be structured to encourage dialogue around emerging practices, risks, and evaluation criteria, and to surface principles that can inform future research, design, and governance of digital twins in cultural heritage contexts.

Motivation

As cultural heritage institutions face escalating demands to balance access, preservation, and legitimacy, there is a pressing need to critically assess how new technologies shape—not just solve—these challenges. This session responds to that need by reframing digital twins as governance and sustainability instruments whose value depends on how they are designed, orchestrated, and situated in place.

Target Audience

  • Digital heritage researchers and scholars
  • Museum and cultural heritage professionals
  • Heritage technologists and designers
  • Policy-makers and heritage governance actors
  • Interdisciplinary scholars working at the intersection of technology, place, and sustainability

Keywords

Digital twins; Sustainable heritage; Sense of place

Chairs

Elisabeth MONAMY, Archeomuse, Austria
Daniel STILLER, Netherlands
Bert BROUWENSTIJN, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands

Description

In earlier sessions on gamification in Cultural Heritage, most presentations focused primarily on educational apps and games. This year, the session shifts attention toward the limitations encountered when developing gamification approaches and educational games or applications in heritage contexts.

Rather than concentrating only on successful implementations, the session aims to explore the constraints that influence the design and development process. These limitations may relate to technological restrictions, institutional frameworks, funding structures, content complexity, or the challenges of translating cultural heritage knowledge into engaging interactive formats.

By examining these issues, the session seeks to foster a more critical and realistic discussion about the creative and practical challenges involved in developing gamified and educational heritage applications. Contributions reflecting on lessons learned, development constraints, and design trade-offs are particularly welcome.

Motivation

While gamification has become an increasingly popular approach in cultural heritage communication and education, much of the discussion has focused on successful projects and educational outcomes. Less attention has been given to the practical constraints and limitations that shape the development of such applications.

This session aims to create space for discussing these challenges, encouraging developers, researchers, and practitioners to reflect on the obstacles they encounter during the design and implementation of gamified heritage experiences. By sharing these insights, the session hopes to contribute to a more realistic understanding of how gamification can be effectively integrated into cultural heritage contexts.

Target Audience

  • Educational app developers
  • Game industry professionals
  • Researchers in cultural heritage
  • Citizen science practitioners

Keywords

Gamification; cultural heritage; public participation; educational technologies; technological solutions

Chairs

Giorgio VERDIANI, Dipartimento di Architettura, Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
Elisabetta Caterina GIOVANNINI, Dipartimento di Architettura, Politecnico di Torino, Italy

Description

Moving artworks or parts of buildings across countries was an occasional but common practice in the past. The reasons for these actions ranged from practical reuse to the demonstration of appropriation or cultural continuity. Over the past three centuries, these interventions assumed new motivations, increasingly linked to archaeological studies and the expanding role of museums.

The movement of fragments from their original sites to museums and collections, whether nearby or distant, has occurred in different historical contexts and periods of intensified activity. These shifts reflect changing relationships between countries and evolving cultural interpretations of the concept of the Patrimony of Humanity.

In the present digital era, issues such as nationalism, political debates, and migration have renewed attention on displaced heritage and the complex narratives surrounding it. These discussions often reveal limited awareness of the broader historical and cultural circumstances that led to the displacement of heritage objects. At the same time, digital technologies increasingly contribute to protecting cultural heritage against illicit trafficking and to documenting displaced artefacts.

When an artefact is removed from its original context, an essential part of its meaning is often lost. Conversely, the absence of removed fragments can create a sense of void or incompleteness in the original location. Digital technologies—such as digital replicas, virtual reconstructions, and immersive experiences—offer new possibilities to address these challenges.

This session aims to explore the role of digital replicas, virtual reality, and digital reconstruction in the debate surrounding displaced heritage. Contributions may include case studies, methodological reflections, and practical experiences related to digital reconstruction, digital interpretation, and initiatives that attempt to digitally “repatriate” fragments or collections to their original contexts. Papers discussing strategies, lessons learned, and future directions in the use of digital technologies for addressing displaced or lost heritage are particularly welcome.

Motivation

The motivation for this session is to bring together diverse experiences and perspectives on the use of digital technologies in addressing issues of displaced heritage. By exchanging practices, presenting case studies, and discussing methodological approaches, the session aims to foster dialogue on contemporary strategies for digital heritage documentation, reconstruction, and interpretation within museums and archaeological contexts.

The session seeks to encourage debate on how digital replicas and virtual reconstructions can contribute to current discussions on cultural heritage mobility, museum collections, and the evolving international landscape of heritage interpretation.

Target Audience

  • Cultural and digital heritage experts and scholars
  • Architects and archaeologists
  • Digital media practitioners
  • Digital humanities scholars
  • Cultural heritage professionals and museum staff
  • Researchers and individuals interested in displaced heritage

Keywords

Digital reconstruction; digital survey; museum collections; itinerant heritage; cultural heritage

Chairs

Rowin VAN LANEN, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, Netherlands
Menne KOSIAN, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands, Netherlands
Jaap Evert ABRAHAMSE, Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands & Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands

Description

Cultural landscapes are inherently dynamic and susceptible to change. Although particularly visible in low-lying environments—where change is more rule than exception—all cultural landscapes are shaped by cultural and natural variables. Shifting environmental conditions, geo-political changes, demographic developments, and changing perceptions continuously affect landscapes and the heritage they contain. Consequently, heritage cannot be understood separately from these dynamics, as cultural landscapes are formed through long-term human–landscape interaction.

While dynamics are widely acknowledged, this session suggests they should not be seen as passive background conditions but as a source for research and management. Periods of major change often increase the sensitivity of landscapes to transformation, revealing constraints and boundary conditions shaped by past choices. These dynamics underline the importance of archaeological and historical research for heritage management. Past research preserves not only data but also insight into historical logics and system understandings.

In the context of rapidly developing digital technologies and computational methods, such insights extend beyond their original context and include knowledge of past methods and theories that should be retained when introducing new analytical approaches, digital workflows, and geospatial technologies. While innovative technologies offer valuable tools, they become meaningful only when they build upon existing knowledge and methods rather than obscuring or replacing them.

This session invites papers exploring the relationship between landscape dynamics and historical logics in heritage research and practice. We welcome case studies and methodological reflections on how past research, historical systems, or interpretative frameworks contribute to heritage research and management. Contributors should address how historical logics and research methods interact with digital approaches, data integration, and technological tools in heritage and landscape research, which lessons from past adaptation strategies or research traditions remain relevant today, and how different forms of dynamics affect heritage management in practice.

Motivation

Heritage research and management increasingly operate in contexts of rapid environmental, social, and technological change. While innovative methods and digital technologies offer new possibilities, they also risk disconnecting current practice from the historical research traditions and logics on which much heritage knowledge is built. Moreover, growing technological vulnerability highlights the need for resilient and robust forms of knowledge that are not solely dependent on contemporary digital infrastructures.

This session is motivated by the conviction that sustainable heritage practice requires learning not only from past landscapes but also from past research approaches, methods, and interpretative frameworks. By bringing together researchers and practitioners working in dynamic landscapes, the session aims to stimulate critical reflection on how historical knowledge and research traditions can meaningfully inform contemporary heritage research, management, and innovation.

Target Audience

This session is aimed at researchers and practitioners working in cultural heritage, archaeology, landscape studies, and landscape history, as well as professionals involved in heritage management and spatial planning. It is particularly relevant for those engaged with dynamic landscapes and long-term change, and for scholars interested in the methodological and practical implications of integrating historical research traditions with contemporary analytical and digital approaches.

Keywords

Dynamic landscapes; cultural heritage; historical research logics; adaptation strategies; heritage management; methodological reflection

Chairs

Nadine ALPINO, The State Library of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Brigit DANTHINE, Austrian Archaeological Institute (Austrian Academy of Sciences), Austria

Description

A central goal of CHNT is to bring together researchers from diverse disciplines and backgrounds, creating a vibrant forum for the exchange of ideas. This dialogue thrives on the energy, creativity, and perspectives of the younger generation of scientists. Their contributions not only enrich the scientific discourse with fresh insights but also offer valuable experience engaging with peers in an international academic setting.

We therefore invite students and recent graduates to present their ongoing or completed Master’s or PhD research. Submissions with novel ideas, innovative methodologies, ingenious solutions, or critical reflections are particularly welcome. While all presentations should relate to cultural heritage and new technologies, priority will be given to topics aligning with the main themes of this year’s conference.

This dedicated session aims to support and encourage young researchers, particularly those presenting for the first time at an international event. To foster participation, the conference committee will waive registration fees for presenting students under the age of 27 and offer a Best Student Paper Award for outstanding contributions.

Motivation

The session provides a welcoming, supportive, yet professional environment where young researchers can share their work, receive constructive feedback, and exchange new ideas with peers and experts alike. This dynamic interaction benefits both presenters and the audience, while the Best Student Paper Award serves as an additional motivation to highlight promising research.

Target Audience

Young scientists, PhD students, and Master’s students.

Keywords

Young scientists; first presentations; empowering young talents

Chair

Maria Stella LUX, Politecnico di Milano – Department of Architecture Built Environment and Construction Engineering, Italy

Description

In historic city conservation plans, urban green heritage is rarely documented as an integral component of the Historic Urban Landscape, except for major historic gardens and isolated monumental trees. This limited recognition is also linked to persistent knowledge gaps: the distribution and evolution of urban vegetation remain poorly documented due to the lack of diachronic analyses tracing the long-term transformation of urban green structures, as well as the limited inclusion of private green spaces and small-scale or diffuse vegetation within spatial datasets. At the same time, digital technologies are increasingly used to document, analyse, and manage built heritage, while urban vegetation remains largely underrepresented within heritage inventories. This gap limits the capacity of heritage management frameworks to address emerging challenges such as climate adaptation and urban resilience in historic city centres.

In line with the principles of the UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape, the session aims to enable the proper recognition of urban vegetation as a living and dynamic component of historic cities. It welcomes contributions presenting experiences and methodological approaches that combine heritage studies with urban ecology, exploring how different technological tools can support a better understanding, mapping, and monitoring of urban vegetation within historic contexts.

Particular attention will be given to digital and geospatial approaches that make it possible to document vegetation at multiple scales, including often overlooked elements such as small courtyards, private gardens, and diffuse urban greenery. Relevant contributions may include GIS-based spatial analysis, historical cartography analysis, urban tree inventories and digital heritage databases, as well as participatory and citizen science initiatives that support the collection and integration of ecological data in historic urban areas.

By combining historical sources with contemporary spatial and environmental data, these approaches allow researchers and practitioners to trace the long-term relationship between cities and vegetation, identify persistent green structures embedded within historic fabrics, and reveal hidden reservoirs of urban nature.

Motivation

This session addresses the persistent gap between heritage conservation practices and contemporary urban greening strategies, particularly in historic urban contexts. While digital tools and geospatial technologies are increasingly adopted to document and manage built heritage, urban vegetation remains largely underrepresented within heritage inventories and spatial databases. This limits the capacity of conservation policies to address climate adaptation challenges in historic cities.

The session aims to explore how GIS-based analysis, historical cartography, and hybrid approaches combining spatial data with on-site observation and participatory methods can support a more inclusive and adaptive understanding of cultural heritage by integrating living and dynamic components such as urban vegetation. By highlighting the potential of digital mapping, spatial data integration, and collaborative data collection, the session seeks to foster a shared operational ground between heritage conservation and urban ecology, enabling evidence-based decision-making and long-term stewardship strategies for historic urban landscapes.

Target Audience

  • Heritage conservation professionals and researchers
  • Urban planners and landscape architects
  • GIS specialists and digital heritage experts
  • Scholars working on climate adaptation, urban ecology, and historic cities

Keywords

Green heritage; historic urban landscape; GIS; urban vegetation; adaptive heritage conservation

Chairs

Elisabetta Caterina GIOVANNINI, Politecnico di Torino, Department of Architecture and Design, DAD, Italy
Igor Piotr BAJENA, Hochschule Mainz – University of Applied Sciences Mainz, Institute of Architecture, Germany

Description

Working with 3D in the context of cultural heritage and archaeological data is becoming increasingly complex in terms of heterogeneity and scale. This calls for robust frameworks that enable meaningful integration, interpretation, and reuse of 3D data and models. The academic community continues to produce massive amounts of 3D data that remain hidden, unstructured, or unreadable, and as a result, 3D models are often excluded as a substantive argument in scientific discussions.

This session focuses on knowledge visualisation and informative modelling as critical instruments for structuring, analysing, and communicating cultural heritage knowledge. Particular attention is given to ontological approaches, metadata schemas, and standards such as domain-specific, cross-domain, and linked-data-oriented models.

This session invites contributions that explore theoretical, methodological, and applied perspectives on:

  • An ontological perspective for formalising knowledge about 3D modelling and HBIM
  • Virtual reconstructions of historical structures and lost heritage using 3D technologies
  • Use of metadata schemas and standards in 3D research contexts, projects, and platforms (e.g. IFC, CIDOC CRM, CityGML)
  • AI approaches for data, paradata, and metadata enrichment for 3D models
  • Machine learning for classification, prediction, and pattern recognition in 3D documentation
  • Open source tools and methods supporting 3D digitisation and data management
  • Linked Open Data approaches as a framework for semantic interoperability and 3D data integration
  • Case studies demonstrating practical applications in research, heritage management, or public dissemination
  • FAIR approaches to 3D data, including reuse, dissemination, 3D web publishing, and online repositories
  • Approaches to address authenticity and uncertainty in 3D models

By bringing together conceptual frameworks and practical experiences, the session aims to foster dialogue on how semantic and visual approaches can enhance the understanding, accessibility, and sustainability of cultural heritage knowledge, using 3D models as both a scientific tool and a point of access to heterogeneous data.

Motivation

This session seeks to address the gap between theoretical and practical implementation of 3D tools and methods in cultural heritage, archaeology, and architecture. It aims to initiate a discussion on contemporary approaches to 3D data management and the responsible and sustainable use of 3D technologies in academic and professional contexts.

Target Audience

We welcome papers from researchers, practitioners, and heritage professionals who critically reflect on challenges and opportunities in knowledge modelling and visualisation within 3D contexts.

Keywords

3D models; informative modelling; 3D data modelling; ontologies for cultural heritage; 3D FAIRness

Chairs

Piotr KUROCZYNSKI, Hochschule Mainz – University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Karol ARGASIŃSKI, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
Yusuf ARAYICI, Northumbria University, United Kingdom

Description

Cultural heritage preservation is facing unprecedented challenges as climate change, armed conflicts, and rapid socio-environmental change increasingly threaten historic sites worldwide. International frameworks such as the Venice Charter and UNESCO’s Charter on the Preservation of Digital Heritage highlight the urgent need for resilient, future-oriented documentation and management strategies that safeguard both physical monuments and their digital counterparts.

This conference session invites professionals from heritage conservation, site management, digital documentation, and public administration to explore how Building Information Modeling (BIM)—and in particular Heritage Building Information Modeling (HBIM)—can support sustainable management of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The session will focus on how structured, object-based, and life-cycle-oriented information management can enhance conservation planning, risk preparedness, and long-term stewardship.

A central theme is the alignment of heritage information workflows with the ISO 19650 series for information management using BIM. Participants will gain insight into how ISO-compliant processes—such as clear information requirements, Common Data Environments (CDEs), standardised classification systems, and interoperable data structures—can be adapted to the specific needs of cultural heritage and site management authorities. Emphasis will be placed on translating technical standards into practical tools for daily heritage operations.

The session also addresses the organisational dimension of digital transformation. Many heritage institutions face barriers such as limited resources, skills gaps, and fragmented data environments. Through applied examples and best-practice strategies, the session will demonstrate how coordinated information management frameworks can strengthen collaboration between conservators, architects, engineers, archaeologists, and decision-makers.

Designed as a forum for exchange between practitioners and strategists, this session aims to position BIM and ISO 19650 not merely as technical solutions, but as strategic instruments for UNESCO site management—supporting resilience, transparency, and sustainable preservation in an era of growing uncertainty.

Motivation

The session is motivated by the urgent need to strengthen UNESCO site management in the face of climate risks and conflict impacts. It aims to demonstrate how BIM-based information management aligned with ISO 19650 can enhance documentation quality, collaboration, and long-term resilience in cultural heritage preservation.

Target Audience

Heritage site managers, conservation professionals, architects, engineers, digital documentation specialists, policy makers, and IT coordinators involved in UNESCO site management who seek to implement BIM and ISO 19650–based information management workflows.

Keywords

Heritage Building Information Modeling (HBIM); UNESCO World Heritage Site Management; digital heritage documentation; sustainable cultural heritage preservation

Chairs

Barbara CARE, University of Lausanne, Switzerland
Dorina MOULLOU, Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports, Greece
Walter CRIST, University of Leiden, Netherlands

Description

The study of board games and play in past societies has recently experienced a significant methodological and conceptual renewal. Once considered a marginal or antiquarian topic, the archaeology of play is now increasingly recognised as a key field for understanding social interaction, cultural transmission, and everyday practices in ancient and pre-modern societies. Games were not merely forms of leisure but deeply embedded cultural artefacts connected to education, numeracy, social hierarchies, ritual behaviour, and the circulation of ideas and technologies.

This session—associated with the COST Action GameTable (CA22145): Computational Techniques for Tabletop Games Heritage—explores board games and ludic practices as material, social, and cognitive phenomena, with particular attention to how new technologies and digital methods are transforming their study, interpretation, and dissemination. Archaeological remains of games, such as boards and gaming pieces, offer unique opportunities to combine material analysis with experimental archaeology, digital reconstruction, computational modelling, and AI-assisted approaches.

The ubiquity of play across cultures and periods makes games an ideal case study for investigating connectivity, cultural exchange, and shared practices across regions. This session encourages contributions addressing games from prehistory to the modern era and from the Mediterranean to regions that remain underrepresented in current scholarship, especially when digital or technologically enhanced methodologies play a central role.

We particularly welcome papers that:

  • Integrate archaeological, historical, and ethnographic evidence
  • Employ 3D modelling, GIS, computational simulations, serious games, or AI-based reconstructions
  • Address issues of cultural heritage interpretation, museum display, and public engagement through games
  • Explore how digital tools can reconstruct rules, gameplay dynamics, and social contexts of ancient games

Motivation

By focusing on play as a cultural practice and on games as heritage objects, this session aims to demonstrate how digital technologies can deepen our understanding of past societies while also offering innovative ways to communicate archaeological knowledge to wider audiences.

Target Audience

  • Archaeologists and historians
  • Digital humanities scholars
  • Researchers in game studies and archaeoludology
  • Computer scientists and AI researchers engaged in modelling complex systems, agent-based simulations, or probabilistic behaviours applied to cultural heritage data
  • Museum professionals and heritage practitioners

Keywords

Games; AI-based approaches; digital technologies; cultural heritage; museums

Chairs

Vera MOITINHO DE ALMEIDA, University of Porto, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Portugal
Dominik HAGMANN, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austrian Archaeological Institute, Austria

Description

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly shaping the ways in which archaeological data are managed, analysed, and interpreted (Gattiglia, 2025; Kyriakoulia et al., 2025). From automating classification and pattern recognition to enabling regional or even continental-scale comparisons, AI-based methods open unprecedented possibilities for archaeological synthesis. However, these methodological advances also raise fundamental questions of ethics, sustainability, and epistemology. This session seeks to examine how AI can be employed responsibly and sustainably across different archaeological contexts, with special attention to the balance between equal access options, technological innovation, data quality, and interpretative depth.

The session will explore three interrelated themes. First, it will address ethical considerations surrounding data provenance, algorithmic transparency, aspects of FAIR (Wilkinson et al., 2016) and CARE (Carroll et al., 2020) data principles, and the potential reinforcement of biases through automated processes.

Second, it will focus on questions of sustainability: how AI approaches such as machine learning can be designed to work effectively, in an environmentally responsible and resource-efficient way, including under unstable or resource-limited conditions such as regions with limited internet connectivity or power supply.

Third, it will engage with a critical shift in digital archaeology: moving from continuous data generation to meaningful knowledge extraction. With ever-growing digital repositories, the challenge is no longer only access to data but deriving theoretically informed insights about past human behaviour and material culture.

By combining conceptual discussion with practical case studies, this session invites reflections on how AI can contribute not only to efficiency and scalability but also to reflexivity, inclusivity, and knowledge creation in archaeology.

The session forms part of the activities of the EU COST Action CA23141 MAIA (“Managing Artificial Intelligence in Archaeology”, https://maiacost.eu/), which fosters collaborative research on ethical, methodological, and sustainable applications of AI within archaeology and the broader heritage sector.

Motivation

Recent advances in artificial intelligence and robotics have transformed archaeological research—from data acquisition, feature detection, and image analysis to automated classification, predictive modelling, and large-scale synthesis across sites and regions. Yet these developments also raise ethical and sustainability challenges.

This session aims to foster a critical dialogue about responsible AI integration in archaeology. Key questions include how fairness, transparency, and inclusivity can be ensured in algorithmic research; how workflows can remain functional under limited computational or infrastructural conditions; and how AI can support meaningful interpretation of archaeological data rather than simply generating additional datasets.

By bringing together researchers, digital humanists, and practitioners, the session seeks to evaluate pathways toward a sustainable and reflective use of AI in archaeology.

Target Audience

Archaeologists, data scientists, and digital heritage professionals engaged with computational methods at multiple scales—from object-level analysis to large regional datasets. The session will also appeal to participants interested in AI, data ethics, archaeological theory, and responsible innovation. In addition, project coordinators, heritage managers, decision makers, and technical staff working in environments with limited connectivity, financial resources, or energy infrastructure are encouraged to participate, fostering discussion on feasible and context-aware AI strategies.

Keywords

AI in archaeology; ethics; sustainability; research; data acquisition and management

Chairs

Yael ALEF, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Ruth LIBERTY-SHALEV, Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Yusuf ARAYICI, Northumbria University, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Piotr KUROCZYŃSKI, Hochschule Mainz – University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Constanze FUHRMANN, Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt, Germany

Description

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming the ways in which cultural heritage data are collected, structured, analysed, and interpreted. Advances in digital documentation technologies—from photogrammetry and laser scanning to sensor-based recording and large-scale heritage databases—have dramatically increased the availability and complexity of archaeological, architectural, and heritage data. However, translating these expanding datasets into meaningful interpretations and informed heritage assessments often remains tacit, expert-dependent, and difficult to reproduce or teach.

This session explores how AI can support the transformation of heritage documentation into structured knowledge and interpretive insights. By bridging workflows from field data acquisition to analytical frameworks and decision-support systems, AI has the potential to enhance the interpretation, evaluation, and management of cultural heritage.

At the same time, integrating AI into heritage practice raises methodological and conceptual questions. How can AI contribute to heritage value assessment as a cultural and interpretive practice? How can digital documentation pipelines be structured to enable effective machine-assisted analysis? What role should human expertise play in guiding and validating AI-generated interpretations? And how can heritage professionals ensure that AI systems meaningfully engage with the complexities and contextual richness of cultural heritage data?

This session brings together contributions that examine the integration of AI within heritage documentation, knowledge systems, and interpretive practices. Particular attention will be given to approaches that connect field documentation, data management, machine learning, and heritage assessment, demonstrating how AI can help bridge the gap between data acquisition and interpretive insight.

By exploring both theoretical frameworks and practical applications, the session aims to foster discussion on how AI can support new forms of knowledge production in archaeology and cultural heritage while maintaining critical engagement with disciplinary expertise and interpretive responsibility.

Motivation

We invite contributions that investigate the role of Artificial Intelligence in transforming heritage documentation into interpretive and analytical knowledge for conservation, preservation, and management. Papers may address theoretical, methodological, or applied perspectives, including case studies from archaeological fieldwork, heritage documentation projects, digital archives, or decision-support systems.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

  • AI-assisted analysis and interpretation of heritage documentation
  • Integrating field data acquisition with AI-driven analytical workflows
  • Machine learning approaches for archaeological and historical site interpretation and pattern recognition
  • AI-supported heritage value assessment and decision-making
  • Knowledge extraction from large-scale heritage datasets
  • Exploring both AI for digital documentation (e.g. photogrammetry, 3D models, LiDAR, AI-assisted HBIM) and data for AI interpretation
  • Data infrastructures and knowledge systems for AI-enabled heritage research
  • Design approaches for human–AI collaboration, including human-in-the-loop frameworks and transparency in heritage assessment
  • Challenges in translating heritage data into meaningful analytical insights
  • Case studies demonstrating the integration of AI into heritage practice and research
  • Theoretical and methodological implications of introducing AI into heritage workflows

Target Audience

We welcome contributions from archaeology, architecture, heritage studies, digital humanities, computer science, and related fields that critically examine how AI can bridge the gap between data acquisition, knowledge generation, and heritage interpretation. The session particularly encourages participation from heritage managers, conservation practitioners, decision-makers, data specialists, and AI researchers interested in exploring AI applications in cultural heritage.

Keywords

Heritage documentation; computational heritage; digital heritage workflows; AI for heritage interpretation; values-based conservation; knowledge representation; human–AI decision support



CHNT31 Round Tables

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Chairs

Eva STEIGBERGER, Federal Monuments Authority Austria, Austria
N.N., Federal Monuments Authority Austria, Austria

Description

The training of the next generation of archaeological heritage managers faces significant challenges. This round table, held in the Ahnensaal of the Vienna Hofburg — the headquarters of the Federal Monuments Authority Austria — aims to bring together representatives of all relevant stakeholders to discuss sustainable training concepts and strategies for supporting the next generation in archaeological conservation in Austria.

University training excavations play a fundamental role in teaching the practical “craft” of archaeology, including scientific evaluation and the principles of monument preservation. In addition to university-based training, internships are a key element of professional development. These can take place at the Federal Monuments Authority, Austrian universities, international field schools, or within private excavation companies and associations during ongoing excavation and post-excavation projects. At the same time, many archaeologists begin working in archaeological service companies even before completing their degrees.

Insights into the current training and working situation of both beginners and experienced archaeologists — including students, educators, and practitioners — provide the basis for a broader discussion. Key questions include: What is the current state of professional training for future generations? How do students evaluate existing training opportunities and what improvements do they expect? Do university training excavations adequately address monument preservation? How important is early professional experience? How does “learning by doing” function on large construction-site excavations? What opportunities are currently available to students, and what additional formats might be needed?

Ultimately, the discussion focuses on one central question: Are graduates sufficiently prepared for the realities of professional archaeological practice? Addressing this challenge requires realistic training programmes that bridge expectations from academic education with the demands of everyday professional work.

Motivation

The motivation behind this round table is to ensure sustainable training and professional development for future generations of archaeological heritage professionals. Evaluating current educational programmes and discussing opportunities for improvement with all stakeholders involved is essential to strengthen the long-term capacity of the sector.

Target Audience

Heritage professionals working in archaeology, including practitioners in heritage management and conservation, experienced archaeologists, early-career professionals, and students. Participants may also apply for a discussion slot in the round table.

Keywords

Education; young professionals; heritage management

Chairs

Branislav MEREŠ, Althandel Civic Association, Slovakia
Peter KONEČNÝ, Althandel Civic Association, Slovakia

Description

Mining heritage represents a field where archaeology, technology, landscape, and social history intersect directly with everyday heritage practice. Former and active mining sites are complex, difficult to access, environmentally sensitive, and embedded in living communities. They are shaped by long-term transformation, material decay, safety constraints, and limited documentation—precisely the “real-world conditions” highlighted in the CHNT31 theme Getting Dirty – Back to the Roots of Cultural Heritage Work.

Building on discussions initiated at CHNT29 (2024), this round table aims to further develop mining heritage as a focused contribution within the Archaeology & World Heritage framework. It provides a structured platform for exchange between researchers, heritage managers, digital specialists, and practitioners working under operational constraints.

A central theme will be the specific challenges of documenting and digitising mining heritage. Underground spaces, unstable structures, difficult or restricted access, low-light conditions, humidity, and safety limitations significantly affect archaeological recording, photogrammetry, laser scanning, and other digital workflows. Mining sites therefore act as testing grounds where digital tools must adapt to physical and legal realities.

The round table will address mining heritage as a trans-regional and diachronic phenomenon, spanning prehistoric to modern periods, including still-operating sites. Particular attention will be given to landscape transformation, authenticity and integrity, conservation strategies, and legal and infrastructure requirements for making old mines accessible.

Further discussion will focus on adaptive reuse, including tourism, education, and alternative functions such as energy production or climate control, as well as on the role of 3D, VR, and XR technologies in presenting inaccessible underground spaces. Short impulse contributions will be followed by moderated discussion to encourage critical exchange and future collaboration.

Motivation

Mining heritage remains underrepresented in broader archaeological and World Heritage debates, despite its relevance to landscape-scale heritage, industrial archaeology, and applied heritage management. Mining landscapes often cross regional and national borders and span multiple historical periods, yet management approaches are frequently fragmented.

The motivation of this round table is to strengthen interdisciplinary and trans-regional exchange, building on the momentum of CHNT29. Mining sites present unique documentation and digitisation challenges due to underground environments, limited accessibility, safety regulations, and environmental conditions. They therefore provide an ideal context for critically reflecting on digital tools and heritage strategies under operational constraints.

Increasing interest in opening historic mines for tourism, education, and adaptive reuse—including energy or climate applications—further highlights the need to integrate archaeological knowledge, legal frameworks, and digital documentation into planning and management processes.

Target Audience

Archaeologists and industrial archaeologists working on mining and extractive landscapes; World Heritage practitioners; heritage managers; conservators; digital documentation specialists (photogrammetry, laser scanning, 3D modelling, VR/XR); engineers and safety experts involved in underground access and stabilisation; professionals engaged in tourism development, education, and adaptive reuse of mining sites; policy-makers and researchers interested in sustainable landscape-scale heritage management.

Keywords

Mining heritage; Archaeology & World Heritage; Digital documentation; adaptive reuse; cultural landscapes

Chairs

Soultana ZORPIDOU, Independent, Greece
Bert BROUWENSTIJN, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands

Description

Cultural heritage has traditionally been grounded in materiality: monuments, artefacts, sites, and other physically enduring objects that stabilise memory across time. Digital technologies challenge this assumption. When a ruined temple is rendered as a 3D scan, does that scan become cultural heritage in its own right, or is it merely a representation? If a digital reconstruction incorporates speculative elements, does it verge on historical fiction? And can born-digital phenomena—such as virtual memorials, videogame archives, or social media hashtags—be considered heritage at all?

This roundtable explores the ontological and temporal implications of digital heritage. Participants will examine how digital technologies transform concepts of authenticity, originality, and aura (after Walter Benjamin), and how heritage shifts from a stable object to a network of relations: between data and material referents, between past and present interpretations, and between institutions, technologies, and publics. A digitised artefact is not simply “the same thing in another format,” but a new entity with distinct affordances, risks, and meanings.

Digital heritage is therefore not a copy, but a re-articulation—a heritage-in-process.

The discussion will also focus on temporality. While digital heritage is often framed as a strategy of preservation, digital systems are inherently unstable: file formats decay, platforms disappear, and software becomes obsolete. At the same time, digital heritage objects are frequently updated, remixed, or forked. The roundtable will address key questions:

  • Is digital heritage about freezing the past or sustaining a living process?
  • Does perpetual accessibility flatten historical distance?
  • How should we understand ruins and decay in digital contexts?

Motivation

Rather than presenting definitive answers, this roundtable aims to generate dialogue across disciplines and perspectives. Participants—scholars, practitioners, and technologists—will explore heritage as performance rather than substance, examining what digital heritage does rather than what it is.

By foregrounding relationships, temporality, and technological mediation, the discussion seeks to illuminate how digital technologies reveal and transform the cultural practices through which heritage is constituted.

Target Audience

  • Heritage scholars in archaeology, museology, or digital humanities
  • Archivists and librarians involved in digitisation projects
  • Technologists and designers working on VR/AR heritage experiences
  • Practitioners from Indigenous or local communities engaged in digital preservation

Keywords

Digital humanities; ontology of heritage; authenticity; cultural memory

Chairs

Soultana ZORPIDOU, Independent, Austria
Elias MESSINAS, ECOAMA – Holon Institute of Technology (HIT), Israel

Description

When we talk about lost Jewish communities in Europe within a museum or historical context, we often focus on the crucial chapter of the Holocaust. This round table invites a new discourse—both theoretical and practical—on illuminating and focusing on the happy and celebratory moments of the history of these Jewish communities and their lost intangible heritage, including local traditions, gastronomy, music, and other aspects that constituted the daily life of once vibrant communities that flourished for centuries but no longer exist in their original places.

Is it possible to make this absence visible using new techniques? Do we want to give those forgotten members of the community space to tell their stories and focus on the character of their existence in peaceful times?

Is it important for future urban design to include these forgotten parts of history and place them back into the public space? How can this be achieved, and how can technology support such efforts?

The round table also asks whether the commemoration of lost Jewish communities could be shifted from a closed museum context into the public realm—bringing remembrance, interpretation, and engagement directly into urban spaces.

Motivation

This round table represents the third part of an ongoing discussion initiated within the CHNT community. Previous sessions opened a discourse that generated strong interest among participants. The continuation is motivated by new project proposals and initiatives that wish to present their work within the CHNT31 framework and further develop this conversation.

Target Audience

Jewish museums; museologists; university projects; public authorities; urban designers; digital designers.

Keywords

Lost Jewish heritage; inclusive urban design; future talks

CHNT31 Trainings

These hands-on trainings present state-of-the-art methods and technologies that participants can explore and practice during CHNT31. The duration depends on the type of training.

The trainings can only be attended on-site.

All trainings are free of charge.

Click on “Description” in the expanded section to access and download the detailed training descriptions.

Please register for the trainings by e-mail: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “training title”).

Chairs

Elias MESSINAS, ECOAMA – Holon Institute of Technology (HIT), Israel
Panayotis ANTONIADIS, NetHood, Switzerland

Description

Explore the conference venue as a stage and testbed for various technologies and research methodologies presented during the conference. This workshop offers participants and students the opportunity for hands-on experience with tools and techniques introduced during the conference lectures, particularly the “Talking Buildings” tool. Using this approach, participants present cultural heritage methods, technologies, and tools from the perspective of the building itself—speaking as “I” rather than referring to the building as “it.” See https://talkingbuildings.net/

Experts, suppliers, or manufacturers presenting tools at CHNT31, as well as volunteering students, will be invited in advance to participate in the workshop by proposing a specific technology, tool, or methodology to be tested at Schönbrunn Palace. At the same time, registered CHNT31 participants will be invited to join the workshop in a similar way to submitting a contribution to a session or round table, working together in small groups.

Each group will visit pre-assigned areas of Schönbrunn Palace (coordinated with the CHNT organisers) and discuss how the selected tool can be applied and how it can support documentation, restoration, reuse, or reinterpretation of cultural heritage buildings. Each group will prepare a short text presentation (“I, the building”) and collect visual material—photos and short videos—during the conference, focusing on architectural spaces, details, decorative elements, the gardens, and other aspects of the site.

At the end of the workshop, each group will present their findings in a short performance of approximately five minutes, using visual material such as slides, videos, or online media. These presentations will stimulate discussion, encourage shared observations, compare different tools and methodologies, and foster a vibrant exchange of ideas among experts, researchers, and students.

Motivation

The aim is to develop a creative format that facilitates interdisciplinary dialogue between technology creators, researchers, and heritage professionals. The workshop will produce communication material that is educational, inspiring, and engaging both for the CHNT community and for the wider public.

Target Audience

Technology creators; researchers; heritage professionals; interested members of the general public.

Keywords

interdisciplinarity; creative communication; community engagement

Please register for the trainings by E-mail to: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “Listen to…”).

Chairs

Federica DI BIASE, University of Cyprus, Cyprus
Kelly GILLIKIN-SCHOUERI, Maastricht University, Netherlands
Jona SCHLEGEL, Independent, Netherlands

Description

In the field of cultural heritage studies, digital storytelling is gaining popularity as a strategy to communicate scientific research to wider audiences. By combining traditional scholarship with non-conventional elements—such as text, audio, video, 3D models, and interactive maps—digital storytelling enables new ways of presenting research in accessible and engaging formats. Often implemented in digital and online environments, these approaches allow experimentation with diverse multimedia formats and narrative structures.

At the same time, the increasing number of tools and platforms for creating and disseminating digital narratives requires critical engagement. It is not enough to simply learn how to use a specific platform or tool; heritage professionals must also understand the particular affordances and communication strategies of different media. Translating field-based archaeological and architectural research into compelling narratives for diverse audiences requires careful planning, including decisions about narrative structure, media selection, audience needs, and the balance between scholarly depth and accessibility.

This training introduces a design-thinking, human-centred approach to digital storytelling as a structured methodology for developing effective heritage narratives. Participants will learn how iterative design processes—such as empathising with users, defining communication challenges, ideating narrative concepts, prototyping stories, and testing outputs—can transform complex heritage research into accessible digital experiences.

Through hands-on activities, participants will critically evaluate existing digital heritage narratives and apply design methods such as personas, journey mapping, and storyboarding to their own projects. The training emphasises transferable conceptual skills rather than specific software tools, enabling participants to translate fieldwork documentation and museum collections into meaningful public narratives that resonate with diverse audiences while maintaining scholarly rigour.

Motivation

This training responds to the CHNT31 call to explore how heritage professionals can address interpretation, storytelling, and community engagement while maintaining scientific rigour and ethical responsibility. Many professionals in archaeology, cultural heritage, and architecture are skilled at recording sites and objects but face challenges when transforming their research into engaging digital narratives.

The training therefore aims to provide a methodological framework that combines participatory approaches with critical digital literacy. Participants are encouraged to bring their own research topics and materials for the case-study component of the training. Organisers will provide guidance in advance regarding preparation requirements, while alternative case-study examples will also be available.

Target Audience

Researchers, heritage professionals, educators, and students in history, archaeology, and related humanities fields. The training is particularly relevant for those planning to develop digital storytelling projects within their research, teaching, or heritage communication activities.

Keywords

Cultural heritage; digital storytelling; human-centred design

Please register for the trainings by E-mail to: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “Make it Matter”).

Chairs

Stephen STEAD, Paveprime Ltd, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Jane JANSEN, Intrasis, Sweden

Description

This workshop explores how conceptual modelling can support the long-term accessibility and reuse of archaeological archive material created across different periods, organisations, and documentation traditions. It focuses on the combined use of CIDOC CRM and selected extensions, including CRMarchaeo and CRMinf, as a practical framework for linking heterogeneous archival records. Particular emphasis is placed on incorporating local oral history, including myths and legends, as contextual sources within archaeological archives, illustrated through an Irish excavation and survey example.

When working with data deposited in archives from different periods and organisations using evolving recording methodologies, a recurring challenge is the systematic access to elements of the record without fully immersing oneself in the original documentation environment. This high intellectual cost often has to be paid by each scholar wishing to work with the records of a specific archaeological investigation, creating a significant barrier to the broader reuse of archival data.

The FAIR data principles require that research objects should be Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR) both for machines and for people (Wilkinson et al. 2016). One approach to achieving FAIR accessibility while reducing interpretative effort is to map heterogeneous documentation to a common conceptual framework or “lingua franca,” such as CRMarchaeo.

Within this archival context, CIDOC CRM provides a shared semantic structure for describing cultural heritage information. The CRMarchaeo and CRMinf extensions offer additional means of representing archaeological observations, interpretative processes, and supporting sources. Used together, these models help clarify relationships between material evidence, documentation practices, and contextual knowledge, including intangible sources preserved alongside traditional archaeological records.

Motivation

The workshop aims to explore archetypical solutions and provide participants with hands-on experience in mapping actual archaeological documentation practices to CRMarchaeo. These methods can then be applied to both current and historical archive documentation within participants’ own institutions, enabling integrated and reusable datasets for internal and external use.

CRMarchaeo was developed to promote a shared understanding of how to formalise knowledge derived from archaeological observations. It provides a set of concepts and properties that enable clear representation and separation of observations and interpretations made both during fieldwork and in post-excavation analysis.

CRMinf complements this by making reasoning and interpretation explicit within cultural heritage information systems. It provides structures for documenting how conclusions are reached, which sources support them, and how levels of certainty are expressed. This supports transparency, provenance tracking, and the long-term reuse of archival information.

Training Format

Participants will work through a series of case studies reflecting different excavation documentation practices, ranging from 1950s-style excavation daybooks and context recording sheets to database and CAD-based recording systems and modern integrated object-oriented database and GIS platforms such as Intrasis.

Keywords

Archives; integration; CRMarchaeo; FAIR

Please register for the trainings by E-mail to: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “CRMarchaeo Workshop”).

Chairs

Antonio GARRIDO MARIJUAN, Tecnalia, Spain
Luna NAVARRO, TU Delft, Italy
Andrea NATALE, Schneider Electric, Italy

Description

This training session adopts a practical and interactive approach based on the real experience of the SMARTeeSTORY Horizon Europe project. The session begins with a brief introduction of the trainers and an overview of the SMARTeeSTORY project, followed by a structured training programme.

First, participants will receive an introduction to the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) methodology, including its definition, scope, and areas of application. The training will then address the complexity of renovating historic buildings and improving their operational efficiency while respecting heritage values.

The relationship between energy efficiency potential and building smartness will be explored through the application of the SRI methodology. The SMARTeeSTORY project will be presented as a case example, highlighting its objectives, challenges encountered during implementation, and the solutions developed.

The core of the training will focus on case studies from the project that demonstrate practical applications of SRI in historic contexts. Trainers will present examples where smart technologies were successfully integrated into historic buildings, discussing technical, regulatory, and cultural challenges encountered. Particular emphasis will be placed on lessons learned, including stakeholder engagement, adaptability of smart technologies to heritage constraints, and measurable benefits in terms of decarbonisation and operational efficiency.

Interactive elements such as group discussions, exercises using SRI tools, and question-and-answer sessions will allow participants to reflect on the presented approaches and apply them to their own contexts. Participants will also receive practical guidance on conducting SRI assessments, interpreting results, and planning smart upgrades that respect both the historical value and the technological potential of heritage buildings.

By the end of the training, participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of how SRI can be applied to historic buildings and will leave with actionable strategies and professional connections to support future implementation.

Motivation

The training aims to address barriers to the renovation of historic buildings by demonstrating how automation of Technical Building Systems (TBS) and the application of the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) can increase building smartness while supporting decarbonisation goals.

Target Audience

Building managers; municipal administrators and decision-makers; technology providers; designers; technicians.

Keywords

Smartness; SRI; historic buildings; advanced controls; decarbonisation

Please register for the trainings by E-mail to: info@chnt.at (Subject: Registration Training “Smartness of historical buildings”).

Call for Posters, Short Films & Software Applications – Digital Creative Award

We are looking for posters, short films and apps/software applications within the conference framework.

All projects require a mandatory poster (A0, portrait), which will be displayed in the conference venue.

On-stage presentations may be given using PowerPoint or similar formats.

Participants are invited to give a short two-minute pitch, including up to 30 seconds of their film or app demo. The best presentation will be voted by the audience!

Submission Deadline: October 16th, 2026

Please send a digital copy of your poster as a PDF by October 23rd , 2026 to info@chnt.at (max. files size: 2 MB)

SUBMIT YOUR CONTRIBUTION HERE

!!!Bring your printed poster: Wednesday, November 11th, 2026, 8 – 9 AM (registration desk)!!!

CHNT-ICOMOS Austria

Karlsplatz 13
1040 Vienna
Austria

info@chnt.at

Karlsplatz 13
1040 Vienna
Austria

info@chnt.at