Standing together for heritage

Saint Kitts and Nevis, May 2025

At the Global Sustainable Islands Summit, the INTO family came together with a shared message: climate change is threatening our cultural heritage and the time to act is now.

Launching a powerful joint statement at a dedicated side event, INTO members invited delegates to endorse its urgent call to action. This statement, shaped by feedback from INTO members through a recent network-wide survey, reflects the collective voice of heritage professionals working on the frontlines of climate change.

We were especially delighted to welcome Al Ebanks and Nigel Maduro, youth ambassadors from the National Trusts of the Cayman Islands and Aruba, as part of our event and INTO delegation. Their presence and contributions highlighted the vital role of young people in shaping the future of heritage and climate action.

Across the world, from the Caribbean to the Pacific, the Indian Ocean to the North Atlantic, communities are witnessing the devastating effects of rising seas, violent storms and biodiversity loss. Sacred sites are being swallowed by the ocean, historic buildings are being torn apart by extreme weather and traditional knowledge is at risk of being lost forever.

These are not distant or abstract threats; they are daily realities that strike at the heart of identity, memory and resilience.

INTO is calling on governments, international institutions and climate finance mechanisms to recognise that cultural heritage is not a luxury – it is a vital part of sustainable development and environmental stewardship. Yet, heritage remains dangerously overlooked in climate policy and funding frameworks.

Heritage professionals across the INTO network reported that existing public policies are vague, underfunded and disconnected from the realities on the ground. Without clear, enforceable guidelines, our past – and our future – remain exposed.

To address this, INTO is advocating for climate-smart heritage policies that reflect local realities and global knowledge. Community-led restoration and resilience projects must be supported and education systems should embed cultural heritage into curricula and public awareness. There is also an urgent need to fund research and digital archiving to preserve knowledge before it disappears.

Young people are central to this vision. They are not only the inheritors of our cultural heritage but also its most passionate advocates. Their creativity and commitment to justice and sustainability must be harnessed through youth-led initiatives and intergenerational learning.

As INTO members gathered in Saint Kitts and Nevis, we pledged to strengthen global collaboration, share knowledge and resources, and advance education that integrates cultural heritage into climate action. We are committed to ensuring our voices are heard at international forums, including the 2025 UN Ocean Conference in Nice and the Climate Change Conference in Belém.

Cultural heritage is not just about the past, it is a guide for the future. It holds the wisdom of generations who lived in harmony with their environment and offers solutions rooted in traditional practices. Let us act now to protect the soul of our islands – and in doing so, protect the planet.

This project was funded through our TAP INTO small grants programme. We are grateful for the generous support of the Helen Hamlyn Trust for making TAP INTO possible; to Caraleya for contributing to the attendance of our Aruba delegates and Island Innovation for our fruitful partnership at the Global Sustainable Islands Summit.

We are indebted too to Dr Pedro Pombo and Professor Stefano Moncada of the University of Malta. Dr Pombo played a pivotal role in shaping the workshop and generously undertook the analysis of the survey results, which Catherine Leonard then used to craft the final statement.