guidance > introduction

International guidance on preservation, values and respect for cultural landscapes has been promulgated over the years by UNESCO World Heritage, International Council on Monuments & Sites (ICOMOS), World Conservation Union (IUCN) and other relevant bodies. 

Regional and national groups have also developed and distributed important documents that can be used by cultural landscape advocates. All of us in the IFLA Cultural Landscapes Committee need to be aware of this group of useful documents. For ready access to some of these documents they have been gathered and provided on this website in PDF formats. This collection of charters, declarations and background papers is worth your time to read, study and quote whenever appropriate. These documents address a relevant range of subjects. They are listed here in historical order. Recognize that thinking on these subjects has evolved over time and view the basic documents as background and foundation for the more recent ones.

• ICIC Athens Charter 1932
• ICOMOS Venice Charter 1964
• UNESCO Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage 1972
• ICOMOS Florence Charter 1981
• ICOMOS Washington Charter on Historic Towns 1987
• ICOMOS Education & Training Guidelines 1993
• ICOMOS The Nara Document on Authenticity 1994
• ICOMOS Inter-American Declaration of San Antonio on Authenticity in the Americas 1996
• ICOMOS Principles for Recording Cultural Heritage 1996
• ICOMOS Charter on Cultural Tourism 1999
• UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003
• Hoi An Declaration on the Conservation of Historic Districts in Asia 2003
• US/ICOMOS Natchitoches Declaration on Heritage Landscapes 2004
• UNESCO Vienna Memorandum on World Heritage and Contemporary Architecture - Managing the Historic Urban Landscape 2005
• ICOMOS Xi’an Declaration on Settings 2005 (Spanish Version)
• ICOMOS Andong Recommendations Historic Villages and Tourism Impacts, 2006

Please feel free to contribute additional documents to this list of useful global and regional guidance.

We respect and deeply appreciate the landscape preservation and conservation efforts that have reached fruition. Much work remains to be done and threats are urgent and pervasive.

ICOMOS Natchitoches Declaration on Heritage Landscapes, 2004