Warsaw Recommendation on Recovery and Reconstruction of Cultural Heritage

This document addresses recommendations for the recovery and reconstruction of cultural heritage that were agreed upon at the international conference ‘The challenges of World Heritage recovery’, held in Warsaw, Poland, from 6 to 8 May 2018.

The purpose of the international conference was to summarize previous discussions and experiences regarding the recovery and reconstruction of UNESCO World Heritage sites, and attempt to develop the most appropriate, universal guidelines for moving forward with properties of exceptional value at the time of destruction, notably for historic urban areas. The 200 participants who gathered from around the world included heritage experts from 30 countries and institutions from Poland, the Global Alliance for Urban Crises, ICOMOS, ICCROM, the World Bank, UNISDR and UNESCO. The conference was organized by Poland and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, implementing decisions of the World Heritage Committee in 2016 and 2017.

Some of the recommendations addressed in the document are:

• World Heritage Committee: To develop guidance for reconstruction and recovery at World Heritage sites
• States Parties to the World Heritage Convention: Use the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) and integrated management approaches for post disaster recovery
• Advisory Bodies: Clarification of conservation doctrine as it applies to reconstruction