Giving a Future to Our Past
We’re on a mission to empower every community to safeguard their cultural and natural heritage against climate change impacts. Preserving Legacies: A Future for our Past equips local leaders with the scientific knowledge and technical training to develop place and people-based climate change adaptation plans. By combining cutting-edge science, community capacity building, and interactive networking, Preserving Legacies is increasing access to heritage adaptation and transforming conservation as a field to meet the challenges of the climate crisis.
Preserving Legacies is...
A global team of scientists, storytellers, site custodians, and ICOMOS members on a mission to safeguard every site against current and future climate impacts.
An inclusive process that draws upon scientific, local, and Indigenous knowledge systems to co-create place and people-based climate adaptation plans.
A diverse annual cohort of 10 cultural and natural heritage sites connected across the world through a peer-to-peer learning network, supported by an ICOMOS Help Desk.
A commitment to democratize climate adaptation for thousands of heritage practitioners through multimedia training materials and climate resources.
Join our community
We can reach further when we work together. That’s why Preserving Legacies is building a Community of Practice at the nexus of climate change and cultural heritage – and we want you to join. We welcome cultural practitioners, professionals, researchers, advocates, local leaders, and those passionate about climate change and cultural heritage to join our free online community platform.
Our partners
Preserving Legacies is made possible by our partners, who share our vision to enable cultural heritage sites big and small to access the tools needed to address the existential threat of climate change. By partnering with leading organizations in cultural heritage, climate change, and community empowerment, we can transform conservation as a field to meet the challenges of an ever-changing world.
ICOMOS works for the conservation and protection of cultural heritage places. It is the only global non-government organisation of this kind, which is dedicated to promoting the application of theory, methodology, and scientific techniques to the conservation of the architectural and archaeological heritage. It is a global network of experts that benefits from the interdisciplinary exchange of its members, among which are architects, historians, archaeologists, art historians, geographers, anthropologists, engineers and town planners. ICOMOS members contribute to improving the preservation of heritage, the standards and the techniques for each type of cultural heritage property: buildings, historic cities, cultural landscapes and archaeological sites. ICOMOS is the primary partner and fiscal sponsor of the Preserving Legacies project and our team are members of different national committees including France, USA, Ireland and Tunisia.
The Climate Heritage Network (CHN) is a voluntary, mutual support network of government agencies, NGOs, universities, businesses, and other organizations committed to tackling climate change and achieving the ambitions of the Paris Agreement.
Mobilized in 2018 during the Global Climate Action Summit and launched in 2019, the Climate Heritage Network works to re-orient climate policy, planning, and action at all levels to account for dimensions of culture - from arts to heritage.
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world.
Manulife Financial Corporation is a leading international financial services provider, helping people make their decisions easier and lives better. With our global headquarters in Toronto, Canada, we provide financial advice and insurance, operating as Manulife across Canada, Asia, and Europe, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States.