Call for Projects: World Heritage Volunteers 2023 – Working on the Future

Deadline: December 31, 2022

Apply to join the World Heritage Volunteers 2023 – Working on the Future. After fifteen years of grassroots youth activities and international cooperation, and on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, the World Heritage Volunteers (WHV) Initiative meet the challenge of ‘The Next 50’ years to involve young people, communities and site managers in building together new, inclusive societies where World Heritage is a source of resilience, humanity and innovation, beyond the constraints of geography and cultures.

It is in this context of celebration and regeneration of youth and community volunteer efforts for heritage that the UNESCO World Heritage Centre is pleased to launch the Call for Projects for the ‘World Heritage Volunteers 2023 – Working on the Future’.

They look forward to welcoming historic partners and new actors to be part of the renewed activities that make this dedicated community a solid pillar to sustain all future work for World Heritage conservation, preservation and awareness work around the world.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible for selection, both the applying organisations and the proposed projects must fulfil the set of mandatory criteria detailed below.

Organisations

• The applicant should be legally registered as a public or private organisation or institution in the country where the project takes place;
• All activities of the organisation related to WHV should be non-profit. All local, national and international partnerships developed by the applicant in the framework of WHV should be submitted for approval to the WHV coordinators;
• First time applicants should submit two letters of support from recognised organisations and/or institutions recommending the applicant on the basis of past or current proven cooperation;
• First time applicants should submit a copy of their Constitution Bylaws of their most recent activity report in one of the UN official languages.
• Each organisation is eligible to apply for a maximum of 4 projects to be carried out at different sites (you may apply to run several projects at the same site: these will be counted as one project unless they involve a completely different set of local partners and differ substantially in terms of activities and theme).
• In order for the new WHV proposals to be considered in 2023, organisations must have submitted the evaluation form of the projects implemented in the previous year.

Projects

• Should be organised in immediate connection to a property inscribed on the World Heritage List or a site on a Tentative List;
• Should have a minimum 10 day duration consecutive or not, (excluding arrival and departure dates); and include the same group of people for the duration of the action camp;
• Should ideally start after April 1 and end by October 15, 2023;
• Should involve as much as possible, international volunteers;
• Should include awareness-raising activities, practical hands-on activities and skills related to UNESCO World Heritage sites where the action camps will be conducted;
• Should be developed in consultation with site managers and local authorities, reflecting the needs of the sites;
• Should include practical hands-on skills training activities as well as reflection on issues related to World Heritage;
• Should involve the community in order to deepen their knowledge around issues related to World Heritage and the World Heritage Volunteers Initiative;
• Should respect participants’ gender balance (ideally equal number of male and female participants) and geographical diversity (ideally representing different countries and regions).

Application

In order to get involved in and/or renew your commitment towards the protection, preservation, and promotion of World Heritage through the WHV Initiative, fill in the online application by December 31, 2022.

Click here to apply

For more information, visit World Heritage Volunteers.