Day: November 11, 2025

Cultural heritage is the expression of a way of life developed by a community and transmitted from generation to generation through objects, places, beliefs, traditions and artistic interpretations. It is an integral part of a culture and includes its tangible and intangible elements, from antiquity to the present day. Its preservation is an essential means of strengthening a sense of belonging, connecting to our shared humanity and contributing to the social well-being of all peoples.

The notion of cultural heritage has become increasingly important to people throughout the world as they recognize that the heritage of a nation or region is more than its buildings, artifacts or architectural landscapes; it also consists of intangible heritage values and activities that are rooted in a people’s history, such as its daily practices, memories, and historical narratives. These can be the source of conflict and division or bring people together, depending on how they are used. They can also help us learn from the past to avoid repeating mistakes and appreciate the progress we have made.

UNESCO defines cultural heritage in terms of its historic, scientific, and social value for mankind as a whole. It also reflects the way a country sees itself in the wider world. This concept is inherently political and involves decisions that are based on different, historically changing value systems and philosophies, and that can lead to different categories of heritage and the resulting classifications (World Heritage Site, national heritage, etc.).

This heritage has great economic importance, for example through tourism and local development. It also plays an important role in education, communication and intercultural understanding and provides a way to connect to the past. Moreover, it allows individuals to develop their sense of identity and connect to their ancestors, thus contributing to the preservation of their cultural tradition.

The protection of cultural heritage is a complex task that involves all stakeholders: governments, communities and the private sector. Among the threats to cultural heritage are neglect and decay, lack of funding for maintenance, and the illicit trade in cultural items. Cultural heritage can also be damaged through war and other human-made disasters. The destruction or loss of cultural heritage can have serious consequences for the future, as demonstrated by the case of the cultural districts in Aleppo and Mosul, and the irreplaceable monuments that were damaged.

The Center promotes and supports the repatriation of cultural property to Federally Recognized Tribal Nations and Alaska Native and Hawaiian Organizations, as well as other Americans. For example, the repatriation of a sacred drum to the Ysleta del Sur Tribe from a museum in the Netherlands has strengthened the cultural heritage and community of the Ysleta tribe and enabled them to conduct their ceremonies in their traditional manner, which had not been possible for 140 years. In this way, the Center demonstrates the role of American citizens in the preservation and protection of global cultural heritage.

Museums are not only places for preserving and displaying collections of objects, but they also make them accessible to visitors. To this end they must be open to the public, and their exhibitions must be meaningful. This means that they need to be open for research, education and enjoyment by everyone – without exception. They must be able to communicate what they have in the form of objects, stories, texts or other media. Museums are a form of knowledge communication, and in their communication they differ from libraries, theatres and performance spaces which may communicate knowledge through other modes.

The word museum is related to the classical concept of mouseion, seat of the Muses. But museums have a much longer history, starting with private collections that were made to share the fascination with rare items and that later became a place for teaching the general public. They have evolved into institutions which, like universities, collect, conserve, study and interpret the material evidence of human activity and the natural world, making it available to a broad audience.

This evolution has been partly connected to societal changes. For example museums have moved from a landscape that was mostly focused on preservation to an emphasis on refocusing their activities on social justice and community engagement. In our current climate, post Covid and after the murder of George Floyd, there is a renewed sense of urgency to refocus museums as places for democratisation and accessibility.

These developments have had a strong influence on the way museums are managed. The management of a museum is complex and involves a range of responsibilities that are divided amongst staff members in various departments. The role of the museum director and board are crucial in ensuring the integrity of the institution. Their work is guided by policies that set standards, including the institutional or strategic plan, institutional code of ethics and bylaws. The American Alliance of Museums identifies a number of best practices and standards for the management of museums.

Although the basic tasks mentioned by Noble remain unchanged, there is still some debate about how they should be grouped and arranged. In the 1970s the anthropologist Michael Spock proposed to divide museums into two distinct institutes: a scholarly research centre (‘curatorial based’) and a public museum (‘client based’). This model differed from the traditional institute-oriented approach of museology and has been opposed by those who believe that research should not be seen as a’museum function’.

The definition of a museum that ICOM Define has developed, which was selected by the Advisory Council at the meeting during ICOM Prague 2022, is an attempt to harmonise the different approaches to the museum functions. It defines a museum as an institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, studies and interprets tangible and intangible heritage; that is open to the public and that fosters diversity; operates ethically with the participation of communities; and that offers varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing.