SoPHIA – Social Platform for Holistic Heritage Impact Assessment – is a project funded under the EU Horizon 2020 research and innovation scheme, led by Roma Tre University in collaboration with other six organizations in Europe.

The general assumption on which SoPHIA is based is that, since the second half of the last century, culture, including cultural heritage, has experienced a profound mutation through which both its position and role in social dynamics have been transformed. Indeed, it has been widely recognized that culture and cultural heritage have strong impacts on society, in terms of social inclusion, integration and sustainable human development.

Based on the review of political and research literature and test cases a group of researchers have developed a draft model for how to measure the impact of all kinds of interventions in cultural heritage, considering the cultural, social, economic and environmental domains. The model is intended to be useful for sites, cities and other local or regional authorities in their planning and assessment work.

Featured below is a general introduction to SoPHIA. Here is an invitation (also attached below) to learn more about the project: