Advocacy

Because of the wide range of challenges and disruptions taking place to effective heritage conservation in the United States in recent years, World Heritage USA provides a unique voice for the protection of global heritage in the face of threats to these irreplaceable resources.

With a network that includes monthly information sharing meetings with representatives of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Preservation Action, the National Association of State Historic Preservation Officers, the National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers, the Coalition for American Heritage, and many other important national heritage conservation organizations, World Heritage USA has publicly taken positions and issued statements on the following issues:

Recent Advocacy

ICOMOS Carbon Reduction Strategy

ICOMOS Carbon Reduction Strategy
Shared from ICOMOS, 16 January 2024 The ICOMOS Board approved the ICOMOS Carbon Reduction Strategy, prepared by the AdCom Sustainability and Communications Task Force (SCTF), at its meeting of 1 September 2023, in Sydney. The objective of the Strategy is to guide and encourage ICOMOS as a whole towards reducing the carbon footprint of all our…

President’s Message: Innovation and Increasing Engagement in 2024

A Message from ICOMOS-USA President Douglas C. Comer, Ph.D. 2024 will see critical changes for our national committee, changes driven by our increasing attention to the roles that culture plays in the dominant issues of our day: social justice and climate change. In 2023, we changed the name of our…

Call to Action: Sign for COP28 Culture and Heritage Representation

🚨 CALL TO ACTION: Sign on to this global call to include cultural heritage, the arts and creative sectors in climate policy! The world is far off track to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement: seeking new solutions is imperative. Culture and heritage shape our lives in many different…

ICOMOS Spain and ISCEAH Statement Concerning Earthquake in Morocco

ICOMOS-USA and World Heritage USA share the sentiments expressed in this statement produced by the ICOMOS National Committee of Spain and the International Scientific Committee on Earthen Architectural Heritage (ISCEAH) and reproduced below: Madrid, 14 September 2023 We are deeply saddened by the recent earthquake in Morocco and subsequent loss…

Statement on Recent Moroccan and Libyan Tragedies

Sharing in partnership with the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield (USCBS), ASOR, the United States Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS USA), and the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA): This past week has been an immensely difficult one for much of North Africa. On Friday, September 8th,…

Statement on the Wildfire Destruction in Hawaii

The United States national committee of ICOMOS is horrified at the extent of human suffering and the destruction of heritage resulting from the fires in Maui. Our hearts go out to the many people who have lost family and friends in reported numbers that continue to increase. We send our…

Public Comments on the Next Potential World Heritage Nominations from the U.S.

World Heritage USA submitted comments to the Office of International Affairs of the National Park Service regarding the next potential nominations from the US World Heritage Tentative List to UNESCO for possible future inscription onto the World Heritage List. Read the entire letter here or below. June 23, 2023 The…

President Douglas C. Comer Moderates United Nations Conference Panel

President Douglas C. Comer, Ph.D., moderated “Culture as an Enabler to Unlock the Key Challenges and Gaps in the Implementation of the SDGs” at the United Nations on 5 July 2023. The panel was part of an interactive dialogue on Culture and Sustainable Development entitled “Culture as a global public…