United Nations Educational, Scientific And Cultural Organization (UNESCO) / Organisation des Nations Unies Pour L’education, la Science et la Culture (UNESCO)

Abstract

Charter on the Preservation of the Digital Heritage 1 PREAMBLE The General Conference, Considering that the disappearance of heritage in whatever form constitutes an impoverishment of the heritage of all nations, Recalling that the Constitution of UNESCO provides that the Organization will maintain, increase and diffuse knowledge, by assuring the conservation and protection of the world's inheritance of books, works of art and monuments of history and science, that its " Information for All " Programme provides a platform for discussions and action on information policies and the safeguarding of recorded knowledge, and that its " Memory of the World " Programme aims to ensure the preservation and universal accessibility of the world's documentary heritage, Recognizing that such resources of information and creative expression are increasingly produced, distributed, accessed and maintained in digital form, creating a new legacy – the digital heritage, Aware that access to this heritage will offer broadened opportunities for creation, communication and sharing of knowledge among all peoples, Understanding that this digital heritage is at risk of being lost and that its preservation for the benefit of present and future generations is an urgent issue of worldwide concern, Proclaims the following principles and adopts the present Charter. THE DIGITAL HERITAGE AS A COMMON HERITAGE Article 1 – Scope The digital heritage consists of unique resources of human knowledge and expression. It embraces cultural, educational, scientific and administrative resources, as well as technical, legal, medical and other kinds of information created digitally, or converted into digital form from existing analogue resources. Where resources are " born digital " , there is no other format but the digital object. Digital materials include texts, databases, still and moving images, audio, graphics, software and web pages, among a wide and growing range of formats. They are frequently ephemeral, and require purposeful production, maintenance and management to be retained.