4th Huangshan Dialogue ends calling for tech-enhanced heritage protection cooperation

The 4th Huangshan Dialogue on UNESCO-designated sites and Sustainable Development held on 29-30 June in Huangshan, China by the International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) under the auspices of UNESCO, adopted the Huangshan Vision calling for tech-enhanced heritage protection cooperation.

The Huangshan Vision emphasizes the potential role of space, air, and ground-based remote sensing technologies, along with other digital applications, in the monitoring and conservation of UNESCO-designated sites and calls on World Heritage stakeholders to fully utilize digital technologies to strengthen the collaborative conservation and management of UNESCO-designated sites, and to promote collaborative efforts toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The Dialogue also released the Draft Recommendations on Climate Action for Heritage Conservation, calling for decision-makers and stakeholders to take appropriate contingency measures and use the best available technology to improve resilience and adaptation of UNESCO-designated sites in ways that do not negatively affect their authenticity and integrity.

Themed "Digital Technologies Enabling Sustainable Development of UNESCO-designed Sites", the Dialogue organized eight sessions featuring following topics: digital conservation, space technologies and methodologies for the monitoring and evaluation, harmonized management, disaster risk reduction, climate change, space archaeology and spatial intelligence in cultural heritage, integration of heritage and culture and high-quality development, heritage education. The two-day event attracted over 200 participants from more than 20 countries and over ten international organizations including UNESCO, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM).