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Young voices seek a place in the future of world heritage

'Culture and heritage are the shared memories that connect generations. That's why we need intergenerational dialogue.'

From left, Angela Puppini of Italy, Lee Jae-hoon of South Korea and Yasmein Abdo of Egypt, participants in the 2026 World Heritage Young Professionals Forum, pose for a group photo ahead of an interview with reporters at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Monday. (Korea Heritage Service)

Heritage needs "mediators" as much as it needs conservators.

And young people can translate cultural heritage into the language of their own generation, making centuries-old sites and traditions relevant to people today, said Lee Jae-hoon, one of 32 participants selected for this year's World Heritage Young Professionals Forum.

"Young people live in both the present and the future," said Lee, 27. "We're the generation that must decide how we understand cultural heritage today, how we preserve and use it, and how we pass it on to those who come after us."

Lee spoke alongside fellow participants Angela Puppini of Italy and Yasmein Abdo of Egypt during a roundtable interview with local reporters in Seoul on Monday, ahead of the forum's opening ceremony.

Lee Jae-hoon (first from right), a participant in the 2026 World Heritage Young Professionals Forum, answers a question during a media interview at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

Lee heads Archaeoscope, a nonprofit organization that trains university students as heritage educators and provides cultural heritage education and hands-on programs for children in local communities, particularly those from culturally disadvantaged backgrounds. He said he joined the forum to exchange ideas with young professionals from other countries and gain fresh perspectives on how heritage can be preserved.

While each participant brings a different professional background to the forum, they share a common belief that young people have a unique role to play in the future of World Heritage.

Puppini, 31, whose work focuses on service design, community engagement and sustainable territorial development, with a particular interest in Italy's UNESCO-listed Dolomites, said younger professionals bring strengths that are becoming increasingly essential to heritage conservation.

"We communicate naturally through digital technology, which is extremely important for preserving and monitoring heritage. We are highly interconnected and very effective at sharing ideas and values," she said. "Our generation also feels the effects of climate change firsthand, so we're ready to speak up about these new challenges."

Angela Puppini of Italy (first from left), a participant in the 2026 World Heritage Young Professionals Forum, answers a question during a media interview at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

The three participants described heritage not as something frozen in museums or history books, but as a living asset capable of connecting communities across generations.

"We have come to see culture and heritage not as something you only encounter in museums or history books," said Abdo, 31, an Egyptian cultural heritage and education specialist. "(Culture education) can either bring society together or divide it, depending on how it is told and how it is passed on to a new generation."

That makes education just as important as preservation, she said.

"It's not only about helping people value their heritage. It's also about teaching them how to protect it and how to use it as an active force for peace in their own communities."

For that reason, cultural education should extend beyond classrooms into community spaces where people of different ages can learn together.

"Culture and heritage connect generations. They are our collective memories, the stories we share across generations. That's why we need intergenerational dialogue," Abdo said.

Yasmein Abdo, a participant in the 2026 World Heritage Young Professionals Forum, answers a question during a media interview at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

Lee said that youth engagement should not end with symbolic participation at international forums.

"If young people's voices are to have a lasting impact, they need to be included in the decision-making process for heritage conservation and management," he said.

Sustainable heritage governance, he added, requires cooperation across generations.

"The older generation needs to open the door for young people to participate. At the same time, young people should respect the experiences, culture and stories of those who came before them. That's how we build harmony."

Each participant arrived in Korea with different expectations.

Lee said he hoped exchanging ideas with peers from around the world would offer fresh perspectives on protecting Korea's heritage.

Abdo said she was eager to learn how a country with such a long history preserves and interprets its cultural heritage today.

"One part of this program is learning how local communities protect and interpret heritage, and that's what interests me most," she said. "Beyond visiting the amazing heritage sites, I'm looking forward to exchanging ideas with community leaders, site managers, teachers and students. I hope we'll inspire one another."

For Puppini, the coexistence of old and new in Korea was immediately striking.

"I'm really interested to see how local communities are involved in maintaining cultural heritage, and how the heritage has changed," she said. "From what I've seen since I arrived yesterday, I feel there is a perfect balance between past traditions and the future -- between the big buildings and historic heritage. I think there is a lot of work behind making this possible, and I'm really curious to learn how you do this and how it is sustained in Korea."

From left, Angela Puppini of Italy, Lee Jae-hoon of South Korea and Yasmein Abdo of Egypt pose for a group photo during an interview with reporters at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

Established in 1995, the World Heritage Young Professionals Forum serves as the UNESCO World Heritage Committee's official pre-session event, bringing together young heritage professionals ages 23 to 32.

This year's forum has brought together 32 participants from 30 countries, selected from more than 56,000 applicants. They will travel to Seoul, Suwon, Gyeongju and Busan through July 21, visiting World Heritage sites and discussing the roles of communities, education and youth in heritage conservation under the theme "World Heritage, Communities and Education: Empowering Youth as Agents of Change."

Participants will present a Youth Declaration to the World Heritage Committee on July 20.

The 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee opens July 19 in Busan.

hwangdh@heraldcorp.com