Angela Rojas

Angela Rojas is the Edward Larocque Tinker Visiting Professor at Columbia GSAPP, a Consultant Professor at the School of Architecture in Havana, Cuba, and a member of the Cuban National Landmarks Commission. She graduated as an Architect from the University of Havana in 1970, as an Urban Planner in 1980, and received a Ph.D. of Urban Preservation in 1986. In 1997 she attended the ITUC course at ICCROM. She was a Scholar at the Getty Conservation Institute during Fall of 2016.

Since 1970, Angela Rojas has taught Theory and History of Architecture, Urbanism, and Preservation at the School of Architecture of Havana. She has taught as a guest professor in Cuba, Mexico, Angola, Bolivia, and Spain, and lectured in Argentina, the Dominican Republic, France, Italy, Canada, Barbados, the United States of America, and China.

Rojas’ contribution to the preservation of heritage has mainly been on Theory, History, and Urban Preservation in Cuba and other countries. She designed a master’s degree program on Territorial and Urban Preservation in Cuba and the first undergraduate course on Theory of Preservation in Cuba. She is the author of several books, including Conservación patrimonial: teoría y crítica (with Isabel Rigol, UH, Havana, 2013) and Patrimonio del Mercurio (Almadén, Spain, 2013). She is the author of a wide range of publications and is a member of the board of Hereditas Journal (Mexico) and Arquitectura y Urbanismo (Cuba).

Angela Rojas is an Honorary member of ICOMOS and a member of ICOMOS Academy. She was President of the Cuban National Committee of ICOMOS from 2002 to 2007 and a member of the Executive Committee (Board) of ICOMOS from 2002 to 2011. She has advised Cuba, Spain, Slovenia, Mexico, and Panama on World Heritage issues. Her participation in the ICOMOS research network is through the International Scientific Committees CIVVIH, CIIC, and ICICH. She is also a member of DOCOMOMO-Cuba, TICCIH-Cuba, the National Union of Architects and Engineers (UNAICC), Cuba, and the National Union of Writers and Artists (UNEAC), Cuba.

Her research works have included History of Architecture, Urbanism, and Cultural Heritage, capacity building on preservation, rehabilitation of traditional neighborhoods, cultural routes, and industrial heritage. Current research also includes values and attributes in heritage, serial properties, and other themes related to World Heritage as well as the relationship between intangible heritage and historic urban landscape.

Angela Rojas received the Cuban National Award of Architecture in 2022.