Interpretación y Presentación en Sitios del Patrimonio Mundial: Conceptos y Enfoques

Reflection on the Presentation and Interpretation of World Heritage in Mexico

On May 30, an enriching meeting focused on the presentation and interpretation of World Heritage was held in Mexico City, bringing together national and international specialists. The event was organized by the Regional World Heritage Institute of Zacatecas (RWHIZ), in collaboration with the Manuel del Castillo Negrete National School of Conservation, Restoration, and Museography (ENCRyM – INAH) through the UNESCO Chair in Conservation Sciences.

The forum included representatives from UNESCO Category 2 Centers, academic institutions, and heritage professionals, who shared experiences, tools, and reflections on the ways in which heritage is communicated, interpreted, and connected to communities.

The authorities present were Carlos Augusto Torres Pérez, Director General of RWHIZ; Gerardo Ramos Olvera, Director of ENCRyM – INAH; Changnam Hong, Director General of the International Centre for the Interpretation and Presentation of World Heritage Sites (WHIPIC); Alejandro Alcaraz, from the UNESCO Office in Mexico; Isabel Medina-González, head of the UNESCO Chair in Conservation Sciences (Mexico); and Yolanda Madrid Alanís, Deputy Director of Research at the ENCRyM – INAH.

The program included presentations by experts such as Nayeon Lee (WHIPIC), Francisco Corrales (Costa Rica Cultural Focal Point), Manuel Gándara (ENCRyM – INAH), María Antonieta Jiménez Izarrarás (El Colegio de Michoacán / InterpatMx), Vania Carrillo Bosch (INAH), and Aura Banda, a heritage specialist from the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador). The presentations were bilingual, in Spanish and English, which facilitated international exchange.

This event was part of the Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation recently signed between WHIPIC (South Korea) and RWHIZ (Mexico), and marks the beginning of a new phase of collaboration aimed at strengthening the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in Latin America and the Caribbean, with a special emphasis on interpretation as a tool to promote social appropriation and heritage conservation.