Scottish Historic Buildings Trust is delighted to announce our lecture series over the autumn and winter of 2026/27.

When Patrick Geddes wrote in 1915 of Cities in Evolution, he referred less to their historical origins, than to the dynamic relationship of the past to the present, arguing for surgery, both radical and conservative, that would enable folk to conduct their present work in places with long histories.

The folk, the work, the place of Edinburgh and Scotland have evolved considerably since 1915; and so have our conceptions of heritage.

Heritage in Evolution: Folk, Work and Place in the 21st Century will ask what happens when people, places and their heritage go viral on social media, or become intangible; to debate whether access to heritage should be a human right, and how it can be an expression of grassroots human rights; to engage with the unlikely places and media in which modern and modernist heritage can be found.

This being a situation in evolution, there will be no final answers. Each session is a conversation, between expert practitioners and theorists in the field, and, of course, yourselves: of the place, the work, the folk of the people of Scotland.

Join us over the autumn and winter to discuss these topics at SHBT's Riddle's Court over refreshments in our historic Library Room.

14 October 2026: When Historic Buildings Go Viral
11 November 2026: Memory Palace
2 December 2026: Price of Admission
13 January 2027: Heritage Activism
10 February 2027: Two Pints of Lager and a Building Restoration Project
10 March 2027: Heritage on the Edge

All lectures run 6pm to 8pm at Riddle's Court, 322 Lawnmarket, Edinburgh EH1 2PG.

Full series: £43.20 standard, £18.90 student, a 10% saving on individual tickets.

This year's series is sponsored by Curtins. Curtins is an employee-owned engineering consultancy with over 65 years' experience in the built environment, including specialist conservation and heritage work on listed buildings and scheduled monuments across the UK and Ireland.

Full Series Bundle: Heritage in Evolution - Folk, Work and Place in the 21st Century, Sponsored by Curtins

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Full Discounted Series ticket