Climate Change, Coastal Heritage Digitization, and Local Community Engagement at the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage Site, Tanzania

Rising sea levels, tropical cyclones, and saltwater intrusion are accelerating the degradation of Kilwa Kisiwani’s UNESCO-listed monuments—including the Great Mosque and Husuni Kubwa—as well as its shipwrecks, ceramics, and beads. Paleoenvironmental evidence links past climatic shifts to settlement pattern changes, underscoring the site’s vulnerability. To counter these threats, a multi-pronged digitization effort has been launched: drone surveys map erosion hotspots, underwater recording captures submerged shipwrecks, and a mobile app logs tangible and intangible heritage in real time while training local staff. Community engagement ties these initiatives to economic benefits—museum exhibits, cultural festivals, music videos, and locally made products—ensuring sustainable livelihoods alongside conservation. The project’s integration with Tanzania’s National Monument Record database provides a scalable model for climate-resilient heritage management.

Pollard, E., Bates, R., Comte, J.-C., Graham, E., Lubao, C., Munisi, N., & Ichumbaki, E. B. (2025). Climate Change, Coastal Heritage Digitization, and Local Community Engagement at the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage Site, Tanzania. Journal of Field Archaeology, 50(1), 6–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/00934690.2024.2439219