Learn & Discover

Accessibility describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The commitment to make cultural heritage sites, museums, and materials available and usable for as many people as possible, including those with disabilities. This can mean physical accommodations (ramps, tactile exhibits, Braille labels), sensory accommodations (sign language tours, audio guides for the visually impaired), and intellectual accessibility (clear language signage, multilingual information) so that everyone has the opportunity to experience and learn from heritage.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Accountability describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Benefit Sharing describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Citizen Science describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The shared pool of memories and knowledge held by a group of people, often passed through generations. It shapes a community’s understanding of its past and identity, as seen in shared narratives, monuments, or commemorative events.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Community Consultation describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The process of enabling local communities to take an active, meaningful role in managing and protecting their own cultural heritage. This involves building skills, providing access to resources, and creating governance structures where community members can make decisions. Empowered communities are more likely to sustain heritage initiatives, as they feel ownership and responsibility over the outcomes.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The active involvement of local community members in the preservation, interpretation, and decision-making processes of cultural heritage. This goes beyond one-way communication – it includes workshops, community-led activities, volunteer programs, and forums where residents can share knowledge and voice concerns. Genuine community engagement helps make heritage initiatives more sustainable, as they reflect the community’s own priorities and foster local stewardship.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Complaint Mechanism describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Conflict Resolution describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Conflict Sensitivity describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Associations of artisans or craftspeople, especially common in medieval and early modern times, organized to regulate the training, quality, and trade of specific crafts. Guilds played a key role in transmitting traditional craftsmanship skills, setting standards, and protecting the interests of their members within a community.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Cultural Appropriation describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The gradual weakening or loss of a community’s traditional culture, typically due to external pressures like globalization, modernization, or displacement. Signs of cultural erosion include declining use of an ancestral language, fading traditional practices, or younger generations becoming disconnected from their heritage.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Deliberate efforts by communities to revive and strengthen fading or lost cultural practices and traditions. This can involve re-learning ancestral languages, re-establishing ceremonies, or reintroducing traditional arts and crafts to ensure they remain a vibrant part of community life.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Cultural Rights describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Cultural Sensitivity describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The process by which knowledge, beliefs, languages, and skills of a culture are handed down from one generation to the next. It ensures continuity of heritage by teaching younger members of the community through practice, storytelling, and example.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Data Protection describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Do No Harm describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A guiding principle originally from the medical field, applied in heritage and community work to mean that interventions should not inadvertently cause injury or adverse effects. In cultural heritage, Do No Harm reminds practitioners to consider the social and cultural ramifications of their actions – for instance, not disrupting local ways of life, not causing trauma by the way history is presented, or not taking measures that protect artifacts but endanger people.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Duty of Care describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Equity describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Ethical Field Conduct defines principles and behaviors that ensure respect for affected communities, cultural values, and human dignity during heritage protection activities. It emphasizes consent, sensitivity, and accountability in documentation and intervention processes.

Source: ICCROM

Ethical Field Conduct describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Ethics Review describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Free, Prior and Informed Consent describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A principle affirming that communities (especially indigenous peoples) have the right to give or withhold consent to projects that affect their cultural heritage, before those projects start. Free means free of coercion, prior means sufficiently in advance, and informed means they have all the relevant information. In heritage management, this ensures that community voices are respected in decisions like excavations, tourism development, or use of traditional knowledge.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Practices and policies that ensure all genders have equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from cultural heritage activities. In heritage conservation and community projects, gender inclusion might involve encouraging women’s leadership in what may have been male-dominated preservation fields, recognizing gender-specific heritage (like women’s oral traditions or crafts), and making sure interpretation at sites reflects the experiences of all genders.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Grievance Redress describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Heritage Education Outreach describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A study conducted before a development project or policy is implemented, to evaluate its potential effects on cultural heritage sites and values. Similar to environmental impact assessments, a Heritage Impact Assessment looks at how construction, infrastructure, tourism expansion, or other changes might damage or alter heritage (from physical harm to changes in a site’s character or how the community uses it) and recommends measures to avoid or mitigate negative impacts.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Human Remains Ethics describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Inclusion describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Informed Consent describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Intergenerational Equity describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The systematic capture, organization, and sharing of knowledge to support consistent decision-making. In heritage work, it helps preserve institutional memory and improve continuity.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Local Knowledge describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Memorandum of Understanding (Community) describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Natural sites or values recognized for their cultural significance or outstanding beauty, often included in heritage discussions alongside cultural heritage. Examples are distinctive landscapes, geological formations, or biodiversity (flora and fauna) that a community values as part of its heritage and identity.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A method of preserving history by recording or recounting personal memories and community stories. It involves spoken testimonies that provide first-hand accounts of past events, ensuring that experiences and traditions are remembered and shared.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Oral History Ethics describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Participatory Mapping describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Partnership Agreement describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A formal arrangement between two or more parties outlining how they will work together on a heritage initiative. For example, a community group and a national museum might sign a partnership agreement to co-curate an exhibit or to share management of a cultural site. The agreement typically defines roles, responsibilities, resource sharing, and decision-making processes, helping to ensure clarity and mutual respect in the collaboration.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The legacy of traditional music, dance, theater, and other performance-based arts transmitted through generations. It encompasses the skills, creative expressions, and cultural meanings associated with performances in a community.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Photography Consent describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Privacy in Documentation describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Respect for Dignity describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Respectful Interviewing describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Risk Awareness Campaign describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Traditional ceremonies, celebrations, and social practices that are passed down within a community, often marking important cultural or religious occasions. They are key expressions of a community’s identity and intangible cultural heritage.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Rumor Control describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A place revered for spiritual or religious reasons, regarded as holy or imbued with special meaning by a particular community. Sacred sites – such as temples, churches, shrines, burial grounds, or natural features like mountains and groves – are often key parts of cultural heritage and require respectful management.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Measures and strategies aimed at ensuring that living cultural traditions (such as songs, crafts, and ceremonies) continue to thrive. This can include documentation, education, legal protection, or community support to help practitioners transmit their knowledge to future generations.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Safeguarding People describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Shared Authority describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

A collaborative approach to heritage interpretation and management in which professionals (like museum curators or site managers) actively share decision-making power with community members or descendant groups. Instead of experts unilaterally determining how to present history or care for collections, shared authority invites those who inherit or are represented by the heritage to co-create narratives and policies, leading to more inclusive and accepted outcomes.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Social License to Operate describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Stakeholder describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Stakeholder Engagement describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The practice of involving all parties who have an interest or stake in a cultural heritage project throughout its planning and implementation. Stakeholders can include local residents, indigenous groups, government agencies, funders, NGOs, and researchers. Effective engagement means communicating transparently, seeking input, and collaborating on decisions so that the project respects the needs and values of those affected.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Long-established cultural practices, norms, and rituals that are characteristic of a particular community or group. These can include greetings, dress codes, dietary rules, or family ceremonies, reflecting a community’s values and way of life.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Transparency describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Trust Building describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Volunteer Safety describes ethical principles or engagement practices that protect people, respect communities, and improve collaboration in heritage work. It emphasizes consent, accountability, and culturally appropriate decision-making.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

Hostility toward perceived outsiders that can motivate discrimination, neglect, or attacks on their cultural heritage. It raises protection and ethics concerns in conflict and crisis settings.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO

The meaningful involvement of young people in heritage learning, stewardship, and decision-making. It builds long-term capacity and strengthens community ownership of heritage protection.

Source: ICCROM, UNESCO