OurWorldHeritage - Newsletter October

Dear reader

Thank you for your participation on the #2021debate events dedicated to Climate Change and Biodiversity (August), and Heritage Places and Memory (September)!

This month we meet again thanks to the activities prepared by team Heritage and Conflict. Four webinars, one exhibition and an engaging call for stories are organized for this month. We hope to see you back in one of those activities. Heritage can be a strong tool to involve civil society through artworks, especially in relation to heritage sites under threat because of armed conflict.

Thank to a great team effort, our social media following has seen an impressive growth over September and early October, during which both engagement and support have increased considerably. Our #2021debate themes of Heritage Places and Memory and Heritage in Conflict seem to have struck a particular chord with civil society, and our English-language Facebook page now has 2191 followers, having reached 11,752 people with our thematic posts over the last month. Twitter and LinkedIn follow with 644 and 759 followers respectively, while Instagram, our most used network, continues to grow with 1424 followers at last count. Our accounts in other languages are also seeing steady growth, particularly those in Spanish, Portuguese, and Korean. Please follow and share our Social Media channels!

We hope you will enjoy this newsletter. OWH is an initiative created by individuals working on a 100% voluntary capacity. #2021debate provides an open dialogue platform that is equally based on voluntary work of session organizers and speakers. Some of the content of the presenters and discussions may be offensive to some viewers. OWH welcomes diverse viewpoints in the spirit of collegial debate where mutual respect is afforded to all.

Heritage protection starts in times of peace. The 1954 Hague Convention and its two protocols provide guidelines to adopt measures to be implemented before, during and after conflict. In peace time, sound civil and military cooperation shall guarantee that effective protection mechanisms are used amid crisis. Initiatives for cultural heritage protection in extreme situations, including conflicts and terrorist attacks, should be intensified by also making widespread use of new technologies. This is why we call for a direct involvement of NGOs and civil society at large.

MONDAY OCTOBER 18th, 11:00-13:00 UTC

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This session aims at unveiling the concealed nature of the relation between heritage experts and local communities by giving voice to representatives of both ‘categories’ who will have the opportunity to exchange their views and explore what could be done to overcome challenges. more info…

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20th, 11:00-13:00 UTC

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What is the actual state of cultural and natural heritage protection in areas affected by forgotten conflict situations? What good and bad practices are available for a better understanding of the main threats to cultural and natural heritage in such unstable scenarios?

Participants from various regions of the world will contribute to this webinar, presenting their experience on the state of cultural and natural heritage in areas of forgotten conflicts. more info…

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24th, 12:00-13:30 UTC

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This panel aims at shedding light on the initiatives undertaken by creators, filmmakers, artists and performers to answer questions, such as: what is the role that artwork can play in an armed conflict area? How can art contribute to mitigate people’s distress? How can artwork raise the level of consciousness, increasing people’s awareness about heritage asa target of armed conflict? more info…

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28th, 14:00-16:00 UTC

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This panel looks into dynamics pertaining to the destruction of cultural heritage by exploring political action oriented to transforming society. Case studies from India, Iraq, Palestine, amongst other countries, will be analysed. more info…

We would be very happy if you could share your views on dealing with cultural and natural heritage during and/or after armed conflict and engaging civil society in relation to Heritage Sites under threat because of armed conflict. 

We invite you to write a short article to be shared on our website and social media accounts (LinkedIn, in particular) with the aim of raising awareness about the role of cultural and natural heritage during and after conflicts.

You can submit stories before Monday October 25th. more info…

In case you visit Venice (Italy) this month, you can visit an exhibition in the context of #2021Debate Heritage in Conflict. Artworks of photographers, artists, heritage professionals and activists around the world call for safeguarding during and after armed conflict of what local communities identify as heritage. This exhibition has also received some local media attention. more info…

Heritage can be expressed beyond grand monuments, ancient shipwrecks or tiny pieces of pottery at the museum. Heritage is also sensorial. The sounds that surround our daily lives, the musical notes of a song, the words of a traditional poem or an interview.

We are making a global call for audio and sound material that represents intangible heritage. Share with the world pieces of heritage from your site that are not always acknowledged.

You can submit your recordings until 1st November 2021. read more… 

In the framework of the #2021debate December: Opening up to Civil Society, this survey aims to gather data that can help us in our research to make effective comparisons about the role of civil society in heritage governance over time and across countries, within and outside of UNESCO frameworks. Thank you in advance for your collaboration. We really appreciate your time! For more questions email us at owhcivilsociety@gmail.com.

Access the survey here!

We thank the speakers, coordinators, conveners, and collaborators of Climate Change and Biodiversity (August) and Heritage Places and Memory (September) for their collective effort to make both months a great success. You can watch all session recordings on our website:

We would much appreciate it if you would share this newsletter and our Social Media Channels with your local network, and in doing so, support our Global Outreach Team!

The OurWorldHeritage initiative is focussed on reaching out to people and communities all over the world. We maintain Social Media channels in 10 languages to connect, engage and exchange with local communities. You can also follow news on the relevant events in your language. Willing to add a voice in a new language? Do not hesitate to contact us, and we will assist you. 

Twitter – Instagram – Facebook يمكنكم متابعة حسابنا باللغة العربية 

You can join our network through filling out this online form. If you have ideas that go beyond the options presented in the form, you can always send us an email.