Committee Chair Lee Byung-hyun presides over the adoption of the "Busan Declaration on World Heritage" at the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee plenary session. [Cultural Heritage Administration]
Committee Chair Lee Byung-hyun presides over the adoption of the "Busan Declaration on World Heritage" at the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee plenary session. [Cultural Heritage Administration]

South Korea led the unanimous adoption of the "Busan Declaration on World Heritage," a landmark statement calling for international cooperation to address the complex challenges facing World Heritage sites. The declaration sets a new benchmark for heritage conservation, covering digital accountability and inclusive interpretation.

The Cultural Heritage Administration and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs adopted the declaration by consensus Monday morning at BEXCO in Busan, on the opening day of the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee plenary session.

South Korea, as the chair country, spearheaded the drafting process with the participation of experts from all 21 World Heritage Committee member states and the committee's three advisory bodies. In April, the government worked with the Korean National Commission for UNESCO to hold a domestic expert forum and an international expert videoconference, and in May convened an in-person international expert meeting in Seoul to gather further input. Final coordination among member states followed before preparations for the adoption were completed.

Participants pose for a group photo at the international expert meeting held to prepare for the adoption of the Busan Declaration. [Cultural Heritage Administration]
Participants pose for a group photo at the international expert meeting held to prepare for the adoption of the Busan Declaration. [Cultural Heritage Administration]

The declaration underscores the importance of cooperation in responding collectively to the complex threats facing World Heritage sites, including armed conflict, climate change and development pressures. It proposes expanding the existing five strategic objectives — Credibility, Conservation, Capacity-building, Communication and Communities, known as the "5Cs" — by adding a sixth, Collaboration, to form the "6Cs," in order to advance the effective implementation and sustainable protection of the World Heritage Convention. The declaration also marks the first time in the World Heritage field that digital transformation and the responsibilities it entails have been brought into formal public discourse.

The declaration also highlights the importance of "inclusive interpretation" — the responsible, expertise-based explanation of each site's values — and of shared responsibility in World Heritage management, both aimed at ensuring systematic conservation. It further addresses the need for ongoing capacity-building for site managers around the world, and calls for closer recognition of the interdependence between cultural and natural heritage and a more integrated approach to their management.

Committee Chair Lee Byung-hyun presides over the adoption of the Busan Declaration. [Cultural Heritage Administration]
Committee Chair Lee Byung-hyun presides over the adoption of the Busan Declaration. [Cultural Heritage Administration]

Lee Byung-hyun, chair of the 48th World Heritage Committee, told the plenary that "the declaration alone cannot protect World Heritage," adding that "its values will be realized through the trust we build, the capacities we strengthen, the communities we stand with, and the responsibilities we share."

The Cultural Heritage Administration plans to pursue a series of follow-up projects in the wake of the declaration. Twelve initiatives have been drawn up, including the launch of a regular international forum in Busan, support for the conservation, management and inscription of transboundary heritage sites in Asia, efforts to build climate resilience for heritage in Pacific small island developing states, expansion of heritage-based Official Development Assistance, and the development of generative AI-based digital restoration technology for cultural heritage sites.


terry@heraldcorp.com