Comprehensive Research OrganizationWaseda University

The number of properties inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List now exceeds 1,000, making it one of the most successful international systems for the protection of cultural heritage. In recent years, attention has also been growing not only toward World Heritage Sites but toward Intangible Cultural Heritage and the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme. It is expected that, in the future, listings will continue to increase, particularly among developing countries and through the emergence of new perspectives. In Japan as well, the existing cultural property protection system has expanded to include new area-based protection concepts such as the Japan Heritage program. From the global to the local level, it is anticipated that the circumstances surrounding the preservation and utilization of cultural heritage will continue to diversify and become more complex.
Against this backdrop, the UNESCO World Heritage Research Institute has carried out more than 20 years of continuous research, surveys, conservation, and restoration activities focusing primarily on cultural heritage in Cambodia, Vietnam, and Japan. Through efforts to rescue cultural heritage at risk, it has contributed to the recovery of local communities and has earned high commendation for its achievements.
In order for the preservation and use of cultural heritage—an issue commonly faced by the contemporary world, especially developing countries—to contribute to regional recovery, development, and peacebuilding, it is essential to establish a broad, extensive, and multidimensional framework for international and interregional cooperation. At the same time, it is indispensable to develop guiding principles and an academic foundation for the preservation and utilization of cultural heritage that fully take into account the specific climatic conditions, historical and cultural contexts, and geographical relationships unique to each heritage site.
Aiming to build such a network of mutual cooperation, our institute will take the lead in collaborating with academic institutions, governmental bodies, and private companies in various countries. Through case-based, logical analyses, we seek to clarify the correlation between the intrinsic values of cultural heritage and their universal significance in the contemporary world. By accumulating ongoing research, our goal is to establish fundamental
principles concerning what should be preserved, to what extent, and how it should be utilized.