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"I'm bullish on Iraq."
Jeff Morgan of Menlo Park may be one
of the few people in the world who can credibly make
that statement.
Mr. Morgan is executive director of
a start-up foundation that aspires to nothing less
than saving sites around the world where civilizations
began. As in Iraq, many of these ruins are rapidly
being lost to neglect, war, vandalism, looting, erosion,
pollution, and new creeping cities.
The Global Heritage Fund (GHF), founded
in March 2001, has already made its mark in saving
ancient ruins in developing countries, and converting
the surrounding communities into thriving tourist
destinations.
Starting this year, GHF is taking on
the biggest challenge of all. Iraq hosts hundreds
of the most ancient and important archaeological sites
in the world. The names Nineveh, Babylon, Samarra
and Ur are burned into the memories of school children
everywhere.
While antiquities in Iraq have suffered
devastation from looting, war, and the current fighting,
Mr. Morgan and his foundation are planning for a time
when Iraq becomes stable again.
"We believe tourism will be the
No. 1 industry in Iraq -- after oil," says Mr.
Morgan in his office in an old Palo Alto Victorian.
Efforts to protect and restore world
heritage sites in Iraq kicked into high gear in June.
GHF and the World Bank co-sponsored a conference for
Iraqi archaeologists in the famous tourist attraction
of Petra, the ancient city carved out of rose-colored
cliffs in neighboring Jordan.
Thirty specialists in all aspects of
antiquities from all over Iraq spent 10 days in a
hands-on workshop, learning what needs to be done
to preserve and restore their endangered sites.
"They thought they were coming
for a nice trip to Jordan," says Mr. Morgan with
a chuckle. "We made them work for 10 days straight
to develop site-management plans for the top five
sites. And we did it all in Arabic."
Out of the conference came five master
conservation plan outlines for the five most endangered
sites out of the 16 sites that might qualify as world
heritage sites for the United Nations. Now the Iraqi
State Board of Antiquities and Ministry of Culture
have a solid framework to continue planning for the
management and preservation of some of the earliest
cities in human history -- when conditions permit.
This process can move forward as soon
as Iraq calms down, Mr. Morgan says. "People
don't want war," he says. "All the people
I met from Iraq are very positive about the prospects
for having a country. They're happy they're free,
but very scared for their children."
Silicon Valley style
"We're really saving the cradles
of civilization," says Mr. Morgan passionately.
"Every site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site --
the top sites in the world."
Mr. Morgan brings Silicon Valley genes
and skills to this new mission. Son of Silicon Valley
powerhouses James and Becky Morgan, Jeff was trained
as a city planner at Cornell University, and worked
for years with big-name companies and startups, here
and abroad. He specialized in international sales
and marketing, before responding to an inner call
to help the world.
Mr. Morgan and archaeologist Ian Hodder,
chairman of Stanford's Archaeology Department, co-founded
the Global Heritage Fund three-and-a half years ago.
Its goal is not only to preserve and restore ancient
cultural sites, but to promote tourism around them,
and develop self-sustaining, healthy communities.
To this task Mr. Morgan is bringing
Silicon Valley know-how and organization to some of
the most unlikely spots on earth. His technique is
to recruit donors and partners where the money and
expertise are, and then build partnerships and funding
in the receiving country.
"We focus on a site and build a
community partnership for commercial development and
travel," Mr. Morgan says. "This allows you
to have concrete results in one place. I like that."
With some 200 major sites in developing
countries, the process for selecting sites is critical,
says Mr. Morgan. He looks for a great team, timing
for tourism, and a good location. "If it's in
the middle of a desert, no one will live there, and
no one will come," he says.
"We use the Picasso test,"
he continues. "If you can only save six Picassos,
which ones do you keep? Out of 15 forts in Russia,
which one do you save?"
The result: Izborsk, Russia's oldest
fortress, which repelled western invaders for 1,200
years, has already been partly restored through the
GHF process of building partnerships and raising funds,
both internationally and locally.
"Izborsk is the reason Russians
speak Russian today," Mr. Morgan says. "Otherwise
they'd speak German or Lithuanian."
So far, Mr. Morgan and GHF have raised
$1.8 million. They are actively working on nine sites
in eight countries, with an assortment of partners.
They have completed several visible projects, and
are coming out with a book, "Saving Global Heritage,"
on December 1.
"Each site tells a life story that
is so relevant today," Mr. Morgan observes. "Each
site has faced tragedy and war."
Mostly success
One satisfied customer is John Rick
of Menlo Park, chairman of the Anthropology Department
at Stanford. GHF has supported his work at Chavin
de Huantar, a monumental pre-Inca cult center and
world heritage site in the high Andes of Peru.
Thanks to a grant from GHF, the circular
plaza where feathered priests once held religious
rites has been restored. Collapsing drainage canals
have been repaired, and some 500 artifacts cataloged.
"Their help has been utterly critical,"
says Dr. Rick. "Without removing water, the site
doesn't have a future."
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| Before
and after: The main Circular Plaza at
the monumental pre-Inca temple at Chavin de Huantar,
high in the Peruvian Andes, was cleared and restored
to its original floor (right) last summer with
a grant from the Global Heritage Fund of Palo
Alto. Stanford University, the government of Peru,
and two mining companies are also sponsoring excavations
led by Stanford archeologist John Rick of Menlo
Park at the huge UN World Heritage site in order
to develop it for tourism. |
In addition, GHF has helped organize
fundraising involving the local community. A new Chavin
Museum will feature artifacts being collected, and
a new highway is bringing tourists across the Andes.
Dr. Rick notes, "Jeff is already a force in world
archaeological conservation."
Mr. Morgan is also proud of the success
at Chavin de Huantar. He recalls raising more than
$150,000 in Peru, much from two mining companies.
Once the private sector is engaged, they can go to
the government for funds.
"Tourism is a great economic driver
for poor communities," Mr. Morgan says. "There
are hotels, restaurants, transport. There are small
family-owned businesses. I like that.
"I like to see people getting involved
and trained," Mr. Morgan continues. "It's
really neat to see young kids in Peru doing conservation.
They're making twice as much as their parents, and
they have real skills -- and the pride of helping
their heritage."
Not all projects are successful. GHF
pulled out of a project to restore Gede, an old Swahili
city on the east coast of Kenya, after the local team
leader was fired, and people didn't want to work.
No great damage was done because GHF started with
a modest investment, and lost $2,000. "We lost
the leader because of politics," Mr. Morgan says.
A viable Iraq?
Mr. Morgan's biggest hope is that tourism
will help stabilize Iraq. If people have a job, if
they have a family, if they have hope for the future,
they can move forward with their lives, he says. "That's
true in every country where we work."
Following the Iraq Heritage Congress
in June, GHF is now paying for 100 Iraqi guards to
protect Sumerian sites in the south from rampant looting.
Looting is very well organized, mostly
by the tribes, Mr. Morgan says. "Looters are
going out in trucks and loading things up."
GHS is also supporting the Oriental
Institute of the University of Chicago, which is working
with the Iraqis. Three teams created by the Congress
to create master conservation plans for each site
will benefit from mapping and GIS survey tools provided
by GHF.
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This
famous relief of an Assyrian lion at
Nineveh in Iraq is one of thousands of treasures
that have been vandalized in the wake of the
Iraq war. The Global Heritage Fund is paying
for 100 guards to fight looting in southern
Iraq, where it is widespread and organized.
Copyright, Joanne Farouch
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Of 16 potential world heritage sites
in Iraq, the Congress focused on five as being of
highest priority and most endangered. These are Hatra,
Samarra, Ctesiphon, Al-Ukhaidir, and Ur.
At Ctesiphon, for example, the highest
free-standing arch in the ancient world is threatened
by deterioration, vandals, climbers, salt seepage,
and vibrations from large military planes taking off
and landing nearby.
Why not Babylon? Saddam Hussein got
his hands on Babylon, Mr. Morgan says. He restored
the city using modern bricks with his name on each
one, and put up a big building in the middle. "He
did more damage to the site than anyone," he
adds. "It's a disaster."
Mr. Morgan concludes hopefully, "Iraq
could be the next Egypt for tourism; in Egypt, tourism
brings in $3 billion a year."
Please direct media inquiries to:
GHF Press press@globalheritagefund.org
or (650) 325 7520
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