Great news comes with the International Day for Monuments and Sites this year as the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the Global Heritage Fund (GHF) celebrated with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 18 April 2021.

Recognising the similarities of heritage conservation and management between the north and south polar regions, the ICOMOS International Polar Heritage Committee (IPHC) was created on the recommendation of the XII General Assembly of ICOMOS in Mexico in October 1999 and subsequently confirmed by the Executive Committee in Paris in March 2000. It was formally established on 1 November 2000 with the intention of bringing together heritage professionals working in one or both areas.

The Blue Shield has issued a statement on the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh with regards to the cultural heritage.

ICOMOS, as one of the founding members and Blue Shield Board member, fully supports this statement.

At present, monuments of colonialists, oppressors and racists are being toppled in many countries around the world. A common theme within these responses is a demand for change in how we memorialize and represent history and how officially designated heritage specifically addresses racism, colonialism, enslavement and oppression.

Joining the debate spearheaded by organisations such as SAH, Historic England, The Architectural League, National Trust for Historic Preservation and others, and in order to remain a globally active and relevant organization, ICOMOS hosted a virtual workshop initiated by the EPWG (Emerging Professionals Working Group) and ICOMOS Germany’s AG2020 Working Group. The workshop took place on 19 July 2020 and was attended by members from a broad range of ICOMOS National Committees, International Scientific Committees and Working Groups.

As part of their joint mission to Beirut (14-16 September 2020), Marie-Laure Lavenir (ICOMOS), Peter Keller (ICOM) and Valéry Freland (ALIPH) had working meetings with the Director General of Antiquities (DGA) of Lebanon, the heads of several museums and libraries, and many representatives of civil society, including, in particular, the Lebanese committees of ICOM, ICOMOS, and the Blue Shield.