Cultural Heritage and Climate Action
Tackling climate change is this generation’s defining task and Europe’s rich and diverse cultural heritage has a key role to play. This is why heritage organisations across the globe have united with the arts and creative sectors to launch a Global Call to Action urging the UN Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) to include culture in climate policy. Artists and culture and heritage voices worldwide are encouraged to sign on ahead of COP28 UN Climate Conference.
🆕 The world is far off track to meet 2050 climate targets. #Culture has the potential to help us realise low-carbon, just, climate resilient futures. Today we call on @UNFCCC to recognise the power of #CultureAtCOP28 🌍
Add your voice to the campaign ✍️ https://t.co/PZQCgEVxjd pic.twitter.com/T6NY2YFU0t
— Europa Nostra (@europanostra) November 9, 2023
This process was launched at the European Heritage Forum “Reimagining the Anthropocene: Putting Culture and Heritage at the Heart of Climate Action” held on 28 September 2023 in Venice during the European Cultural Heritage Summit.
Finding solutions to the climate crisis has long been at the heart of Europa Nostra’s work. To actively address the vital and timely topic of cultural heritage and climate action, in 2021 Europa Nostra published the European Cultural Heritage Green Paper “Putting Europe’s shared heritage at the heart of the European Green Deal”, developed in close cooperation with ICOMOS and the Climate Heritage Network, with the input of other members of the European Heritage Alliance, and the support of the European Investment Bank Institute and the EU Creative Europe programme. This pioneering paper correlates the contribution of cultural heritage to all key areas of the European Green Deal – launched by the European Commission to make Europe the first carbon-free continent by 2050 – and proposes a series of concrete recommendations both for policy-makers and for cultural heritage stakeholders.
Europa Nostra continues to advocate for heritage at the heart of Europe’s green transformation, with sustainability being one of the priority areas of the European Heritage Hub. The green transition and sustainable development are also key themes in the Cultural Deal for Europe campaign run by Culture Action Europe, European Cultural Foundation and Europa Nostra.
