“… the deterioration or disappearance of an element of the cultural or natural heritage constitutes a harmful impoverishment of the heritage of all the nations of the world,” the World Heritage Convention (1972) states.
The International Day for Monuments and Sites, established in 1982 by UNESCO’s General Conference is an invitation “to reflect, interpret and revisit existing narratives in the perspective of global calls for greater inclusion and recognition of diversity.”
This day is also an opportunity to raise awareness and contribute to the reflection, in particular, by virtually visiting many UNESCO World Heritage sites on Google Arts & Culture.
Three-year scientific plan
On this day, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) aims to raise public awareness of the actions taken to conserve and protect cultural resources threatened by the world’s growing catastrophes and wars.
The organization, which celebrates 60 years of existence in 2025, has chosen the theme of Disaster and Conflict Resilient Heritage—Preparedness, Response and Recovery to cap its three-year scientific plan (2024–2027). Within the framework of this plan, several questions are raised, such as: How can ICOMOS members and constituent committees better prepare for these disasters? What role can we play collectively, and what do we need to be effective in this work?
Activities will take place from IDMS 2025 through to the ICOMOS Annual General Meeting Symposium in October, where we hope to highlight the achievements of the last 60 years.
