WE ARE SITE MANAGERS INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM

1-5 March 2024, Penang, Malaysia

OBJECTIVES

World Heritage Site Managers are the frontliners of the UNESCO 1972 Convention with responsibilities to conserve, protect and safeguard the Outstanding Universal Values of respective World Heritage Sites.

We Are Site Managers International Symposium aims to promote the understanding of the functions, responsibilities, challenges and needs of Site Managers, to international organisations, state parties and the larger heritage-related communities.

In March 2024, leading Site Managers from around the world will be invited to George Town, Malaysia to discuss, debate and deliver their experiences in the field, and thus contribute to achieving the following objectives:

To identify and define the roles, commitments and contributions of Site Managers for the UNESCO World Heritage System.
To achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by engaging in an inclusive and meaningful community-based approach in the World Heritage Site Management through the “George Town Declaration”
To facilitate opportunities for sharing of thought-provoking initiatives in all aspects of Site Managers’ activities, including conservation, communication, development, education, best practices, innovative approaches, largest threats, and other day-to-day activities.
To share the Site Managers’ day-to-day needs, experiences, challenges, and opportunities with peers and stakeholders, thus creating international awareness and recognition of the function of Site Managers as the frontliners in World Heritage Site safeguarding and conservation. These experiences shall be incorporated and integrated as early as possible when key decision makers, including the World Heritage Centre of its advisory bodies, prepare capacity building courses, world heritage management guidelines or handbooks, or projects.
To encourage dialogues between Site Managers with the international and national stakeholders on the perceptions and receptions of Site Managers in World Heritage Site Management, with the aim to reach pragmatic problem solving at site level.
To create a more inclusive, supportive, pragmatic and integrated system at the local and international levels for Site Managers at UNESCO and its advisory bodies to effectively deliver the responsibilities in managing and conserving World Heritage Sites and in protecting the Outstanding Universal Value(s).
To build a network of Site Managers.