Europa Nostra addresses the EU Council Working Party on Cultural Heritage

The Secretary General of Europa Nostra, Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović, addressed the Council of the European Union on 10 October 2024 in Brussels at a special Working Party on Cultural Heritage, held under the auspices of the Foreign Affairs Council.

Invited by the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Secretary General of Europa Nostra thanked the leadership of the Council for the invitation and spoke about the importance of cultural heritage in peace-building, reconciliation and international cooperation. She encouraged the Presidency to work closer in the future with heritage organisations active in local communities for the safeguarding of cultural heritage at risk, especially in conflict zones, and praised the Hungarian Presidency’s dedication to the topic.

 

The Conference on the Protection of Cultural Heritage, hosted by the Hungarian Presidency on 9 September in Brussels, was a unique opportunity to showcase the strategic importance of heritage in external relations, especially in the EU’s enlargement agenda as well as in development cooperation efforts in the EU neighbourhood. The conference also provided a platform to discuss the Council Conclusions on the EU’s approach to cultural heritage in conflict and crisis zones.

Inspired by this meeting and the 2024 European Cultural Heritage Summit in Bucharest, the Secretary General stressed that Europa Nostra has a long-standing history of more than 60 years in advocacy and capacity building for heritage in neighbouring countries. The organisation is well-known in the field of cultural heritage because of the European Heritage Awards  / Europa Nostra Awards, which have the support of the Creative Europe programme of the European Union. Since 2002, more than 600 awards have been given to outstanding projects, individuals and organisations around wider Europe, including Ukraine and countries in the Western Balkans and the Caucasus region.

Additionally, Europa Nostra has also been active in safeguarding heritage for more than a decade with the 7 Most Endangered Programme, run in partnership with the European Investment Bank Institute. Numerous heritage sites from neighbouring countries have been put on the 7 Most Endangered lists, further strengthening intercultural and interfaith links across diverse communities.

Most recently, the EU-funded European Heritage Hub pilot project, led by Europa Nostra,  has seen many of its key activities take place in the Western Balkans and the Caucasus region, most notably the Small Grants Scheme, which aimed at encouraging and empowering heritage stakeholders from 11 neighbouring countries of the European Union. The third Hub Forum is also planned to take place in Montenegro in spring 2025. It will be complemented by a Peer Learning Visit where local heritage stakeholders will be given the opportunity to network with their European counterparts and exchange best practices.

Finally, the Secretary General of Europa Nostra stressed how important it is for the succeeding Presidencies, including Poland, Denmark and Cyprus, to invest in developing further the Working Party on Cultural Heritage and take stock of the momentum built during the Presidency of Hungary.