This year, the 16th Annual Meeting of the South-East European Experts Network on Intangible Cultural Heritage and the 2022 edition of the Training of trainers’ workshop for the European branch of the global network of facilitators will take place back-to-back in Sofia, Bulgaria, sharing the general theme on intangible cultural heritage and education. With a joint reflection day scheduled for 19 October 2022, the two networks are brought together to foster a thorough exchange for greater integration of living heritage in education.

The South-East European Experts Network was established in 2007 to support the implementation of the 2003 Convention in the Europe region. Annual meetings are primarily aimed at representatives of ministries of culture and other authorities in charge of safeguarding living heritage. The meetings are held in collaboration with the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe and generously hosted and organized by the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-Eastern Europe under the auspices of UNESCO.

The Network aims to enhance a common understanding of opportunities and challenges linked to the safeguarding of living heritage as a key asset of South-East European cultural diversity, serving as a regional platform for sharing knowledge and good practice. Since 2018, the annual meetings introduced a capacity-building approach on specific subjects and progressively extended attendance to other relevant experts from the region.

The training of trainers’ workshop for UNESCO-trained facilitators from European countries, is organized in the context of UNESCO’s global capacity-building programme for the effective implementation of the 2003 Convention. It is addressed to Europe-based experts of the Convention’s global network of facilitators, a dedicated and competent partner for countries and stakeholders that seek guidance and training for safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. This network supports countries to safeguard intangible cultural heritage and harness its potential for sustainable development, while promoting broad public knowledge and support for the Convention.

Trained by UNESCO, the facilitators receive ongoing support to update their skills and knowledge through workshops, mentoring, information sharing and review meetings.