Following the success of the first edition, the Ocean&Climate Village docked in Venice, the city connected to the sea by definition. The interactive exhibition, organised by the IOC Project Office of the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe, in collaboration with the Municipality of Venice, was held at the Arsenale di Venezia, from 28 March to 3 April 2022. For this second edition, not only did the exhibition offer guided tours, it was also accompanied by collateral activities such as laboratories, bio walks and artistic performances, raising awareness on the importance of Ocean Literacy as well as on the protection of the ocean in the context of Venice.

The call for applications to participate in the second regional course on interpretive planning at World Heritage properties (WH-Interp) is now open. You have until 18 May 2022, 12 pm CET to apply! The course organised by UNESCO in cooperation with Interpret Europe is mostly aimed at practitioners with a professional role in the management of World Heritage properties in Europe, especially with relation to heritage presentation and interpretation.

The UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe and the abrdn Charitable Foundation (aCF) are launching a call for applications to UNESCO designated sites in Europe, as a part of the 3-year project ‘Promoting sustainable development through UNESCO’s programmes and sites’.

The report on the third regional workshop for Europe on “The Role of Visitor Centres in UNESCO Designated Sites,” held between 23 September and 2 October 2021, has been released. During online and in-presence activities, held in Ercolano, Italy, participants explored the role of visitor centres through a sustainable development lens and reflected on their potential as a catalyst for community engagement and more inclusive forms of heritage-led development in UNESCO designated sites.

The “Interpretive Planning at World Heritage Properties in Europe” report published by UNESCO presents the concept, methodology, and outcomes of the first regional training course on enhancing interpretive planning at World Heritage properties in Europe, held in 2021. The initiative aims to highlight the potential of heritage interpretation in transversally supporting the objectives of World Heritage conservation and management, and introducing a participatory, value-based approach to heritage interpretive planning, aligned with a sustainable development perspective.