The UNESCO Article 18 platform.
Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The UNESCO's Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) is a global commitment to keeping living traditions, knowledge, and cultural expressions alive across generations. The Convention supports communities around the world in preserving and sharing the practices that shape their identities and connect people through culture.
Intangible cultural heritage includes oral traditions, performing arts, rituals, festive events, traditional craftsmanship, and knowledge about nature and the universe, all carried and renewed by the communities that practice them. The Convention recognises that these living traditions are not only part of our past, but an essential part of our shared future.
As part of this commitment, Article 18 of the Convention promotes the recognition and exchange of safeguarding practices, encouraging collaboration, learning, and the sharing of experiences between communities and people worldwide.
The Unesco Article 18 Platform has therefore been thought as a digital space where communities around the world can share, explore, and strengthen efforts to safeguard living cultural traditions, all inspired by the collaborative spirit and principles of the Convention’s Article 18.
A user-friendly interface to facilitate the discovery and sharing of intangible cultural heritage globally.
Enabling communities to safeguard their heritage through a digital platform.
Vizzuality’s contribution to UNESCO’s Article 18 platform included the development of initial technical solutions and the design of a community-centered digital platform. We focused on providing a dynamic, accessible, and collaborative space to acknowledge and celebrate living traditions as well as unwritten customs.
Community-led:
The platform aims at allowing communities to share their safeguarding practices directly. This would empower members to document and preserve their cultural heritage with full agency.
Peer-to-peer learning:
It’s being planned as a space for sharing safeguarding practices, challenges, and solutions, enabling communities to learn from each other and adapt approaches to their local contexts.
User-friendly:
The platform’s design and user-friendly interface will ensure that diverse content (from traditional knowledge to performative arts) can be shared in a way that honours the cultural specificities of each community.
Developing the UNESCO Article 18 platform.
Delivered with impact.
The right balance.
Vizzuality’s expertise in designing for diverse user needs and cultural contexts, along with our experience in working with global stakeholders, was crucial in supporting the UNESCO team to design a platform that could adapt and grow with the evolving needs of its users. This project has been particularly challenging due to the sensitive nature of the content - often involving deeply personal and communal knowledge - and as it has required a thoughtful approach to sharing and safeguarding.
We addressed this challenge by proposing an inclusive and intuitive platform that would allow community members to contribute directly, while also incorporating safeguards to protect the integrity and sensitivity of the shared content.
- Community-Centered Design: We supported the UNESCO team in the exploration of initial technical solutions and design with the goal of enabling communities to safeguard their cultural heritage.
- Thoughtful Research Process: Through research and iterative design, we provided the blueprint of a platform that would meet the diverse needs of its users, facilitating effective communication and knowledge sharing across cultures and contexts.
- Inclusive Digital Infrastructure: We advised on a modular platform that can grow with user needs, and adapt to UNESCO’s infrastructure.
