About UNESCO
It is easy to visit Tuscany and never notice the hard work and dedication that it takes to maintain the priceless historical sites. One can walk down the cobbled streets of Florence’s city center or pass by the medieval towers of San Gimignano without thinking of who keeps these sites in pristine condition. What many travelers never realize is that these vistas and monuments are possible because of a network of organizations under the umbrella of the United Nations Education Science and Culture Organization (UNESCO). By partnering with local and state organizations, UNESCO provides unparalleled resources, expertise and visibility to sites throughout Italy.
UNESCO’s mission is an extension of the UN mandate: the prevention of war through dialogue and international cooperation. Traditional, state-level means of preventing international conflict are held to be insufficient by this branch of the UN. Instead, UNESCO seeks to bridge the chasm of misunderstanding between people by reaching the hearts and minds of men through international cooperation in education, science, and culture. It uses the expansion of knowledge globally through education, communication and cooperation in all sciences to improve mutual understanding amongst cultures, peoples, and states in pursuit of peace.
This arm of the United Nations was a natural outgrowth of the Bretton Woods system developed in the wake of the Second World War. Just as the United Nations itself was born out of the ruins of the League of Nations, UNESCO grew from the International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation (ICIC). Whilst the war raged, intergovernmental cooperation on education did not stop, with the Conference of Allied Ministers of Education (CAME) being called in 1942. In this Conference, experts debated what education ought to look like in allied countries in a post-war world. As the founding of the UN was taking place in the following years, a call for a new organization that would inherit the mantle of the ICIC and CAME was filed during the Dumberton Conference in 1944. Soon after, the first General Council of UNESCO was convened in 1946, and the organization began its long tenure as a respected player on the international scene.
While still new in the international field at the time, this young organization showed the strength of its commitment by launching four flagship campaigns in 1947, 1960, 1968 and 1978. In 1947, it launched its first education campaign in Haiti, which soon blossomed into a global campaign whose focus was Education For All. In 1960, it raced against the clock to save the priceless Temple of Abu Simbel in its historic Nubia Campaign.
Construction of the Aswan High Damn in Egypt threatened to submerge this ancient complex, but the campaign successfully moved it to higher ground, preserving it for future generations. In many ways, this is one of its first major World Heritage missions, a foundational moment for the idea of world heritage and a foreshadowing of its resurrection of Timbuktu and other sites in later years. Finally, the organization made its first major strides towards bridging the natural sciences and government policy in its 1968 by calling the first intergovernmental conference on sustainable development. Finally, in 1978, it made a bold move in the arena of racial equality in its Declaration on Race and Race Relations.
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As an organization, UNESCO divides its interests among five areas. One can easily note that only three are represented in its title: Education, Science and Culture. In reality, the realms of Human Sciences and Communication/Information also hold key places in UNESCO’s mission. The first area this organization focuses on is education. Considering the basis of its constitution, UNESCO believes that war finds its beginnings in the minds of man. The logical answer to this dilemma is therefore to influence young minds in a way that deters war, spreads knowledge and increases understanding of each other. This aspect of UNESCO is perhaps one of the most foundational of all its missions, as can be seen in its first missions in Haiti and the roots of CAME. Ever since then, this organization has pushed to expand access to education globally at all levels and has made gained widespread support in its fight to provide all children with basic education.
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The second focus is science. Fostering transnational dialogue amongst the sciences has been a key tenant of UNESCO since its inception, even as far back as its previous life as ICIC. It invests in the sciences, helping to build capacity in the field globally through funding, education, and cooperation. It has brought scientists together from across to the globe in hopes of solving problems such as lack of access to clean water, ecological preservation, and disaster prevention in recent years. At present, this portion of its mandate has focused on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and the fight against climate change. Despite the visibility of its presence in the field of sustainability, UNESCO has also placed itself at the forefront of the discussion on topics such as the intersection of ethics and technology and artificial intelligence,
This leads us to the third focus of UNESCO: culture. This organization believes strongly in the protection of cultural expression and heritage, both historic and contemporary. Indeed, they hold that development and growth without strong cultural elements places itself at risk, and that heritage itself, material and intangible, grants people a sense of security in times rocked by rapid development. To secure this for future generations, UNESCO has taken on an important role in the preservation of diverse cultural expressions in all their forms, seeking to secure artistic freedom and the restoration of heritage sites. This does not stop in the face of conflict, and this organization works tirelessly to protect heritage sites in conflict zones, even gaining the support of the UN Security Council in many resolutions. While not as widely publicized, this element extends even into cooperation with law enforcement, as it seeks to end the illegal trafficking of cultural property.
While perhaps less visible, this organization has taken on a role that falls outside of its name, but not its mandate. Ever since its inception, UNESCO has taken a particular interest in the realm of Communication & Information, specifically with an eye to the protection of journalists’ rights and freedom of speech. This clearly covers a vast array of topics, but it has placed UNESCO at the forefront of the debate on everything from disinformation and internet freedoms to media freedoms and the persecution of journalists. With the global expansion of internet access, it has extended this focus to include equal access to information globally, as well as increased its efforts to promote media literacy.
The tasks before this organization are vast, daunting in their scope and dependent on the efforts of all around the globe. Ever since 1946, it has brought people together, transcending race, states, and ethnicity to spread understanding and preserve culture. So, the next time you stand in awe before Santa Maria del Fiore or take in the vistas and fresh air in the Val d’Orca, remember that it is through the efforts of organizations like UNESCO that these sights have been preserved.