Salzburg Declaration on the Conservation and Preservation of Cultural Heritage

59 cultural heritage leaders from 32 countries, including representatives of Africa, the Middle East, South America, and Asia, unanimously passed the Salzburg Declaration on the Conservation and Preservation of Cultural Heritage.

The declaration came during the Connecting to the World's Collections: Making the Case for Conservation and Preservation of our Cultural Heritage Seminar held October 28 - November 1, 2009.

The seminar built on the findings of the The Institute of Museum and Library Services Connecting to Collections: A Call to Action, putting them into a global context. It combined presentations by experts in conservation and preservation throughout the world with small working groups tasked with making practical recommendations for future action on specific topics, including:

• emergency preparedness
• education and training
• public awareness
• new preservation approaches
• assessment and planning.

One evening was devoted to what is quaintly (bizarrely!) called a 'fireside chat' on Conservation in the developing world, with a panel of participants from Benin, Iraq, Mexico, Singapore, and Trinidad and Tobago.

Links:
Salzburg Declaration (pdf)
The Institute of Museum and Library Services section on the Salzburg global seminar including videos of some of the speeches.