It’s Time for a UNESCO Recommendation on Open Cultural Heritage

Imagine a world where every person, no matter where they are, can freely explore, reuse, and learn from humanity’s shared cultural heritage. A world where museums, archives, and libraries open their digital doors to everyone, fueling creativity, education, and innovation.

Now imagine a global policy framework that makes this possible. Already, there is a UNESCO Recommendation on Open Educational Resources (OER) and, more recently, another one on Open Science. These documents have guided governments, institutions, and private organisations in building stronger and more inclusive knowledge ecosystems. What if we have one for Open Cultural Heritage?

Introducing the TAROCH Coalition Initiative

To make that vision a reality, a movement is growing, and you can be part of it. TAROCH (Towards a Recommendation on Open Cultural Heritage) is a global initiative launched by Creative Commons to reduce legal, technical, and structural barriers to accessing cultural heritage in the public domain.

TAROCH believes that open access to heritage empowers learning, creativity, and cultural continuity. The Coalition seeks to inspire UNESCO to explore the development of a Recommendation or another standard-setting instrument that promotes open, equitable, and inclusive access to public domain heritage. Our mission is to encourage UNESCO Member States to elaborate and adopt an international standard-setting instrument (a recommendation or other non-binding instrument) that promotes open solutions for sharing cultural heritage responsibly, while respecting the governance frameworks and cultural sensitivities that guide heritage use.

The vision of TAROCH aligns closely with UNESCO’s mandate to foster the free flow of information, safeguard cultural diversity, and preserve shared heritage in the face of global challenges.

Wikimedians Are Already Leading the Way

As Wikimedians, we are already contributing through campaigns such as Wiki Loves Africa and Wiki Loves Folklore, as well as other initiatives that celebrate culture and heritage. Yet, we all face similar challenges, such as copyright restrictions, lack of access, and limited digitization of heritage materials

Turning the Vision into Action

To move this vision forward, the TAROCH Coalition has developed two foundational and interconnected bodies of work: The Open Heritage Statement and The Advocacy Strategy. Recently launched, the Open Heritage Statement outlines why open access to cultural heritage matters and identifies challenges that must be addressed.

These include:

• Lack of clear marking for public domain heritage
• Onerous attribution requirements by heritage institutions
• Overreach of moral rights restricting heritage access
• Heritage protection laws that extend copyright unnecessarily
• No simple way to challenge incorrect copyright claims
• Technological barriers to heritage
• Heritage inaccessibility to people with disabilities, among others

Read more about the StoryFrames that illustrate these challenges here. While the Open Heritage Statement provides the “why” (a clear, community-led articulation of the problem and vision), the Advocacy Strategy on the other hand, delivers the “how.” It offers a roadmap for action and engagement with key stakeholders, including within UNESCO. Considering that UNESCO has 194 Member States, the strategy emphasizes advocacy circles, regional or interest-based groups that can engage locally and build momentum globally.

Local Action for Global Change

TAROCH believes that global advocacy depends on local action. To advance the Open Heritage Statement within the UNESCO process, the Coalition must secure commitments from at least two UNESCO Member States, which begins with community-driven engagement. Advocacy Circles have already been formed around the world, but the Africa Advocacy Circle currently has only six members. We need your voice, your experience, and your leadership.

How You Can Get Involved

Here’s how you can make a difference today:

1. Please read and sign the Open Heritage Statement and share it widely within your community and networks.
2. Apply to join the TAROCH Coalition and help advance open access to cultural heritage at the global level.
3. Join or help form an Advocacy Circle to contribute to grassroots efforts that can shape global policy.
4. Interested in joining the Africa Advocacy Circle? Join our Telegram group here

Alternatively, you can reach out to the following Circle Co-leads for more details:

• Alhassan Mohammed Awal
• Jemima Antwi
• Dr. Nkem Osuigwe, and
• Harriet Henry Bayel

Together, we can make heritage truly open. Cultural heritage belongs to all of us. Let’s make sure that it remains open for learning, for creativity, and for the generations yet to come. Sign the Open Heritage Statement and Join the Coalition. Be part of shaping the next UNESCO Recommendations.