ENGLISH - Candidate to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (2027–2031)

 Lithuania's Candidacy

Lithuania is a candidate for election to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for the 2027–2031 term.

Lithuania is an active member of the World Heritage community, dedicated to enhancing the resilience of World Heritage sites in the face of climate change, human-caused threats and other crises. We support credible and well-balanced representation on the World Heritage List, encourage innovation and digital tools in heritage management, and place strong emphasis on community and youth engagement.

Guided by transparency, professionalism and respect for cultural diversity, our vision is to foster a more sustainable, forward-looking and inclusive World Heritage community.

Our campaign is built around three priorities:

PROTECT • CONNECT • SUSTAIN

Together, they reflect Lithuania's commitment to safeguarding our shared heritage while strengthening international cooperation and resilience for future generations.

Campaign slogan – RESILIENT TOGETHER

Campaign Materials

The following campaign materials are available for download:

• Brochure (English)
• Brochure (French)
• Side Event Programme – From Risk to Resilience: World Heritage in a Changing World

About the Candidacy

As a candidate for the World Heritage Committee, Lithuania seeks to contribute to the effective implementation of the World Heritage Convention by promoting transparency, professionalism, balanced representation and international cooperation.

Lithuania believes that safeguarding Outstanding Universal Value requires resilient management systems, strong communities, international solidarity and practical responses to emerging global challenges. Through its candidacy, Lithuania aims to support a World Heritage system that is inclusive, forward-looking and responsive to the needs of present and future generations.

Campaign Priorities

PROTECT

Safeguarding Outstanding Universal Value

Dedicated to the mission of the World Heritage Convention, Lithuania advances effective protection through a solid legal framework, robust Management Plans, strengthened emergency preparedness, improved inter-institutional cooperation and digital documentation initiatives such as eCulture (eKultūra).

Lithuania also contributes to UNESCO's Heritage Emergency Fund and international restoration efforts, including projects in Mosul and several Ukrainian cities.

We are committed to reinforcing World Heritage protection and improving emergency response, with particular attention to properties on the List of World Heritage in Danger. Lithuania stands ready to share its experience in strengthening regulatory, management and risk preparedness systems worldwide while supporting timely international cooperation and assistance.

CONNECT

Linking Communities and Heritage

Recognising that heritage embodies identity, memory and knowledge, Lithuania promotes a contemporary approach to World Heritage management.

We foster intergenerational dialogue and engage young people through initiatives such as the Culture Passport, the Culture Unlocked  project and digital tools such as eCulture).

Lithuania further strengthens the connection between people, their heritage and the natural environment by supporting the sustainable development of communities living in and around World Heritage sites.

We are well positioned to share community-centred governance models, youth-focused engagement practices and digital innovation, while contributing expertise to balanced List advocacy and a stronger global World Heritage community.

SUSTAIN

Ensuring Long-Term Viability and Climate Resilience

To improve climate resilience, Lithuania promotes capacity-building through international training, responds proactively through its National Climate Change Adaptation Plan and supports assessment tools such as the Climate Vulnerability Index.

Practical measures—including the Fixus Mobilis programme and the integration of heritage, climate strategies and traditional knowledge—advance sustainable, community-based solutions.

Lithuania promotes the long-term sustainability of World Heritage by developing heritage-based, community-centred and traditional-knowledge-driven approaches.

We stand ready to enhance the implementation of global climate adaptation policies, including the Climate Action Toolkit, while strengthening collective efforts to safeguard World Heritage in a changing climate.

Lithuania and World Heritage

Lithuania has been an active State Party to the World Heritage Convention for more than three decades and is committed to protecting, conserving and promoting Outstanding Universal Value through international cooperation, capacity-building and sustainable heritage management.

Lithuania is home to five properties inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List:

• Vilnius Historic Centre (1994)
• Curonian Spit (transboundary property) (2000)
• Kernavė Archaeological Site (Cultural Reserve of Kernavė) (2004)
• Struve Geodetic Arc (transboundary property  (2005)
• Modernist Kaunas: Architecture of Optimism, 1919–1939 (2023)

Lithuania also contributes to international efforts through:

• emergency preparedness and disaster risk management;
• climate adaptation and resilience;
• digital heritage initiatives;
• international training and capacity-building;
• community-centred heritage management.

Campaign

Lithuania's campaign promotes dialogue, cooperation and knowledge-sharing among States Parties to the World Heritage Convention.

Throughout the campaign, Lithuania participates in international meetings, bilateral consultations, expert discussions and public events, presenting its vision for a resilient, inclusive and forward-looking World Heritage system built around the campaign priorities Protect • Connect • Sustain.

News

Follow the latest updates on Lithuania's candidacy for election to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.

This section features campaign news, official announcements, bilateral meetings, international engagements and other developments related to Lithuania's candidacy.

Events

Discover upcoming events organised as part of Lithuania's campaign.

23 July 2026

• From Risk to Resilience: World Heritage in a Changing World
• Side event during the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee
• Busan, Republic of Korea

Organised by the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Lithuania to UNESCO, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania and the Lithuanian National Commission for UNESCO, the panel discussion brings together international experts to explore how World Heritage sites can build resilience in the face of climate change, conflicts, tourism pressures, urban development and other emerging risks.

The programme is available for download.

Contacts

Ms Sigita Bugeniene, email: [email protected]