Opportunities and Challenges in Digitally Transforming World Heritage at 50+ Years

International legal instruments and institutions have reached over half a century of existence; for example, in 2022, the UNESCO World Heritage Convention with 50 years of existence. Furthermore, "The Second Congress of Architects and Specialists of Historic Buildings, in Venice in 1964, the first one being the International Restoration Charter, better known as the Venice Charter, and the second one, put forward by UNESCO, provided for the creation of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)" [1], ICOMOS is the most important not-for-profit heritage network that serves as advisory body to UNESCO's World Heritage Committee.

The ICOMOS Charter of Venice of 1964, in its article 16, already acknowledges the importance of "precise documentation in the form of analytical and critical reports, illustrated with drawings and photographs" [2], and simultaneously the establishment of these important organizations and charters, Abu Simbel temple was documented and moved to a safe location to protect the integrity of this significant historic site in Egypt, the documentation of this temple was done with photogrammetry, at the time the most advanced technology at the time. In contrast, nowadays, anyone with decent equipment and an adequate skill set can document the historic site comparable to the work at Abu Simbel. The products of this work can be displayed in sophisticated virtual reality headsets and disseminated to broader audiences.

Moreover, technology allows us to identify buried sites in the densest jungles and monitor the impacts of climate change on world heritage sites worldwide; technology has substantially enhanced the understanding of cultural heritage resources at large. With the frenetic technological development, new opportunities are offered but also challenges.

One can argue that digital technologies provide opportunities to document and conserve world heritage sites in more detailed. Advanced imaging techniques, 3D simulations, and enhanced visualization approaches, such as virtual reality, offer new platforms for disseminating and exchanging knowledge.

However, many actors have not considered the ethical implications of digital assets for respecting communities where those sites are located. Furthermore, the digital divide between those who can apply those technologies and others who lack financial means, several examples of digital colonialism or appropriation are shameful for world heritage protection.

For this reason, FAIR [3] and CARE [4] among other principles of digital data management desperately need adoption in improving the effectiveness and correctness of digital technologies used for world heritage. In brief, digital assets should be respectful, sustainable, transferable, and ethically correct; they should benefit and contribute to the protection of those sites and provide opportunities to the rightsholders to get help from their use. Also, digital assets should transcend longer periods, so future generations can enjoy them and reuse for better application.