UNESCO Marks World Day for Audiovisual Heritage 2023

The World Day for Audiovisual Heritage (WDAH) is observed annually on Oct. 27. It is a commemoration of the adoption of the Recommendation for the Safeguarding and Preservation of Moving Images in 1980 by the 21st General Conference.

According to UNESCO, it is an opportunity to raise general awareness of the need to take urgent measures for the preservation of audiovisual documents and acknowledge their importance.

UNESCO's Member States also evaluate their performance in implementing the 2015 Recommendation Concerning the Preservation of, and Access to, Documentary Heritage, Including in Digital Form.

This year, the 2023 WDAH will be celebrated under the theme "Your Window to the World". This celebration is a key initiative for UNESCO and the Coordinating Council of Audiovisual Archives Associations (CCAAA) to honor audiovisual preservation professionals and institutions that safeguard our heritage for future generations.

Audiovisual heritage acts as a window to the world, enabling us to witness events we do not attend, listen to voices of the past, and create narratives that inform and entertain.

"Through the exploration of recorded sounds and visual imagery captured on film and video, we not only gain an appreciation for the cultural wealth but also extract valuable lessons from it," UNESCO said.