Advocacy

Because of the wide range of challenges and disruptions taking place to effective heritage conservation in the US in recent years, World Heritage USA has found it necessary to elevate advocacy as a core activity.

With a network that includes monthly information sharing meetings with representatives of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preservation Action, the National Association of State Historic Preservation Officers, the National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, the Coalition for American Heritage, and many other important national heritage conservation organizations, World Heritage USA has publicly taken positions and issued statements on the following issues:

Recent Advocacy

ICOMOS Spain and ISCEAH Statement Concerning Earthquake in Morocco

ICOMOS-USA and World Heritage USA share the sentiments expressed in this statement produced by the ICOMOS National Committee of Spain and the International Scientific Committee on Earthen Architectural Heritage (ISCEAH) and reproduced below: Madrid, 14 September 2023 We are deeply saddened by the recent earthquake in Morocco and subsequent loss…

Statement on Recent Moroccan and Libyan Tragedies

Sharing in partnership with the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield (USCBS), ASOR, the United States Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS USA), and the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA): This past week has been an immensely difficult one for much of North Africa. On Friday, September 8th,…

Statement on the Wildfire Destruction in Hawaii

The United States national committee of ICOMOS is horrified at the extent of human suffering and the destruction of heritage resulting from the fires in Maui. Our hearts go out to the many people who have lost family and friends in reported numbers that continue to increase. We send our…

President Douglas C. Comer Moderates United Nations Conference Panel

President Douglas C. Comer, Ph.D., moderated “Culture as an Enabler to Unlock the Key Challenges and Gaps in the Implementation of the SDGs” at the United Nations on 5 July 2023. The panel was part of an interactive dialogue on Culture and Sustainable Development entitled “Culture as a global public…

Controversial Monuments on Retrial (Collaboration)

Celebrate World Heritage Day with “Controversial Monuments on Retrial,” a free webinar about new approaches to addressing monuments of oppression. In collaboration with The Alliance for the Restoration of Cultural Heritage (ARCH International), and the staff of Memento Park in Budapest, Hungary, our panelists will analyze unique solutions applied to…

Transnistria Between Peace and War: Free Webinar 2 June 2022, 5 pm CEST

As part of a new US/ICOMOS series on heritage at risk, we are presenting “Transnistria Between Peace and War” with renowned Moldovan scholar Sergiu Musteață, Professor in the History and Geography Department at Ion Creanga Pedagogical State University in Chisinau, Moldova, and member of ICOMOS-Moldova.   The session will cover…

Ukraine’s Heritage at Risk: Resources

Pecherskyi District, Kyiv, Ukraine
Following our Annual Celebration of World Heritage on 9 April, US/ICOMOS presented a program on Ukraine’s Heritage at Risk with speakers from both Ukraine and the U.S. explaining the history of the conflict and efforts to preserve Ukraine’s heritage. The session included a presentation and a Q&A session with Dr.…

Cultural Heritage and Armed Conflict: the Case of Ukraine

By Meisha Hunter, FAAR, U.S. Committee Chair International Scientific Committee on Water and Heritage Cultural Heritage and Armed Conflict: the Case of Ukraine and a Short History of International Cultural Heritage Protections in Time of War This presentation seeks to illustrate the war not only as a humanitarian crisis, but…