In recent years with the threat of climate change and the emphasis on developing a more resilient and sustainable world, preservation and re-use of the built resources have become fundamental goals of urban and rural development. These arguments have considerably raised the status and market importance of the preservation profession, adding to the foundational considerations of cultural heritage and collective memory.
The new MSA degree provides a unique setting and structure to train the conservation experts of the future and builds on Miami and South-Florida as an outstanding laboratory to study, restore, and reuse structures dating mostly from the 20th century, from Mediterranean Revival to Art Deco to Tropical Brutalism. The partnership with USoA’s affiliate seat in Rome provides not only access to important actors and associations involved in preservation in Europe, with their unrivalled technical and historic competence, but allows comparisons with the Italian capital’s oftentimes underestimated built heritage of the 20th century.
With 36 credits over 4 semesters, including a summer stay in Rome, the program positions itself at mid-length, and benefits from the participation not only of academic experts but also of experienced practitioners.
