CULTURE
Certifying in-field practitioners
Cultural Heritage Specialist Guide Programme
News
The Cultural Heritage Specialist Guide Programme received the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Awards 2007 under the category of "Education and Training".
The PATA Gold Awards recognise exceptional achievement in a variety of endeavours, bringing acclaim to the best the Asia Pacific’s travel industry has to offer. The winning projects set industry standards for excellence and innovation, serving as examples for others to follow.
The guides training programme was co-submitted with the Lao National Tourism Administration (LNTA).
For more details about the PATA Gold Awards 2007, please visit their website at: http://www.pata.org/patasite/index.php?id=128
Introduction
- Click on image to download pamphlet (PDF 689KB).
UNESCO World Heritage Sites have become the most prominent tourism destinations in the Asia-Pacific region. Representing universal values, these landmark sites range from breathtaking cultural landscapes to living historic towns, from works of engineering genius to stunning architectural monuments. The tourism boom at these sites has fostered international exchange, and tourism revenue promises to bring development to these communities. Yet massive tourism pressure threatens the long-term condition and authenticity of the sites.
Sustainable tourism calls for a new breed of responsible and informed tourists. The major rise in cultural tourism has seen a demand by visitors for more meaningful interaction with both the heritage and surrounding communities. In order to contribute to the wellbeing of the sites and local stakeholders and to minimize negative impacts from tourism, heritage guides play an important role in educating the visitors about the authentic values of the site and codes of responsible conduct.
In response to these concerns, the UNESCO-ICCROM Asian Academy for Heritage Management (AAHM) launched the Cultural Heritage Specialist Guide Programme in 2005. This pioneering, practical and internationally-recognized training and certification programme is being implemented through active partnerships between members of the Asian Academy, training institutions from the UNESCAP Asia Pacific Education and Training Institutes in Tourism (APETIT) network and National Tourism Organizations (NTOs). The Institute for Tourism Studies (IFT) serves as the regional focal point with UNESCO providing technical advisory services and oversight.
OBJECTIVES
Complementing existing national training/certification courses, the advanced training/certification offered by the programme will:
- provide accredited guides the opportunity to strengthen their skills in interpreting heritage sites, with an emphasis on World Heritage Sites;
- enhance the educational experience of visitors (both local and international), leading to longer stays and repeat visitation;
- contribute to the sustainable safeguarding of UNESCO World Heritage sites by educating visitors about conservation issues and advocating codes of responsible conduct;
- benefit local communities by promoting their role as hosts and active participants in the cultural tourism industry.
BENEFITS
UNESCO and the regional and national training institutions offering the programme will officially accredit guides as Cultural Heritage Specialist Guides, as an advanced supplement to existing national guide certification schemes.
On completion of the course, accredited guides will have preferential access to UNESCO materials, teaching aids for guiding visitors around heritage sites, brochures and schematic maps, and other exclusive UNESCO products.
If you require any further information, please contact:
UNESCO Office of the Regional Advisor for Culture in Asia and the Pacific
920 Sukhumvit Road
Bangkok, Thailand
Tel: +66 2391 0577 Ext.509
Fax: +66 2391 0866
Email: asian-academy[at]unescobkk.org