Shaped by her experiences as teacher in senior high school and instructor at Oluno & Hardap Prison, Freda Mwalyana Sampati Tawana is since 2009 a senior culture officer at the Ministry of Education Arts and Culture in Windhoek, Namibia. ‘The first time I c ›››

Tarcila Rivera Zea is a Peruvian indigenous rights activist. She grew up speaking Quechua and only learnt Spanish at the age of 10 when she started attending school. Since a young age, she has defended the rights of indigenous peoples, and embraced ›››

‘Each language has its own unique and incomparable history’ – Yalitza Aparicio, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for the Indigenous Peoples. While the practice and transmission of living heritage contributes to the vitality, strength and well-being of indigenous communities, language is the principal vehicle throu ›››

The involvement of bearer communities and civil society is crucial to the implementation of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. Accordingly, the Ministry of Culture, Crafts and Relations with the Parliament of Mauritania has launched a project ›››

Between 2015 to 2019, UNESCO granted emergency international assistance of US$299,972 to prepare an inventory of the intangible cultural heritage present in Côte d’Ivoire. This project, implemented by the Ivorian Cultural Heritage Office and the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, allowed to train ›››

Deng Nhial Chioh is a heritage professional who lives and works in South Sudan. Coming from two different communities, he had a strong taste for cultural diversity from an early age. ‘I fell in love with heritage, discovering and learning about m ›››

The ‘Capacity building project for the safeguarding of Comoros’ intangible cultural heritage for sustainable development’ has been completed with a closing ceremony held in Moroni, Union of Comoros at the end of 2019. The project greatly strengthened Comoros’ national capacities to safeguard intangi ›››

The Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Saturday ended its 14th session which took place in the Colombian capital under the Chair María Claudia López Sorzano. The Committee adopted guidelines for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage i ›››

The 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages is a time to reflect on the importance of safeguarding indigenous peoples’ living heritage by recognizing the vital role that indigenous languages play in ensuring the continued transmission of their heritage to future generations. To c ›››

At its fourteenth session, the Intergovernmental Committee endorsed a set of operational principles and modalities for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage in a wide range of emergency contexts, including conflicts and natural disasters. The operational principles and modalities build on the research ›››