Call for presentations at the Conference:
NGOs Experiences and Reflections on ICH in Armed Conflicts
In cooperation with NAKS Suriname, the Norwegian Crafts Institute and the Persian Garden Institute for Living Heritage, NGOs accredited to UNESCO, #HeritageAlive is organising an online conference with the presentation of case studies from NGOs operating in the regions concerned.
- The date for the conference is 7 April h 2025.
- The proposed format is an online webinar with the possibility for a plenary discussion.
- #HeritageAlive will act as the host
- Presentations: a Keynote Speech will be delivered by Janet Blake and other NGOs concerned will be approached for presentations.
- All the presenters will be invited to present a paper during the online conference. The paper should include a case study.
- At a later stage we are planning for the presenters to submit their case study to be selected for publication in the special edition of the #HeritageAlive publication.
If your NGO is willing to do a presentation, please send us a 300 word abstract. The abstracts should include:
- A short introduction to your NGO
- Contact person and information
- An introduction to the case study and your reflections
Unfortunately, the subject of this meeting is a very urgent one nowadays with conflict situations in many countries during 2024, and large numbers of people internally and externally being displaced. Therefore, there are several current examples of how war and other conflicts could have huge impact on ICH and its bearers. At the same time, we have witnessed how ICH could play an important and crucial role during armed conflicts. With its focus on the role of NGOs in safeguarding ICH in armed conflicts, the project will also share reflections and experiences and combine these in a proposal providing recommendations om how the legal framework for safeguarding ICH in armed conflict situations could be improved and better applied.
#HeritageAlive is one of the working groups under the NGO Forum, while the Persian Garden Institute for Living Heritage, NAKS Suriname and Norwegian Crafts Institute are NGOs accredited to UNESCO. We request NGOs concerned to share their experiences related to ICH in armed conflicts.
Framing the project
- The project will have a global approach, and target areas where there currently are armed conflicts today, such as Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Palestine, Colombia, Lebanon and Mali.
- The contributions should come from NGOs and present their reflections and experiences from the field both during and after armed conflicts.
- Goals of the conference include sharing of experiences, peer-to-peer learning and capacity-building of NGOs while also seeking to define some broad principles for action.
- The contributions should not be limited to one region but should be spread out to all regions where conflict is present, or refugees are located.
- Better recognition is needed of the risk of ICH becoming endangered due to conflict and war and that these can too often lead to social dislocation, an identity crisis and discontinuation of ICH practice.
- An important aim is to raise awareness about the importance of ICH providing a space of comfort and safety for communities affected by war, including displaced persons and communities.
- The reflections and experiences shared can inform the current international discussion over the international legal framework for safeguarding ICH during armed conflict.
How to do it
Send your abstract before March 1st 2025 to Eivind Falk: eivind.falk@handverksinstituttet.no. Please cc Rachel Gefferie and Janet Blake: rrhg2@kent.ac.uk and blake.chrpd@gmail.com
Yours sincerely
#HeritageAlive
Eivind Falk
Chair
#HeritageAlive is the by UNESCO accredited NGOs journal for sharing experiences from the field. #HeritageAlive was established in 2012 and are a part of the ICH NGO Forum
