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Heritage Justice

Heritage is not—and has never been—a neutral concept. It is deeply entangled with the legacies of colonialism, capitalist extraction, armed conflict, and structural inequality. Our work critically examines how states and institutions often use heritage to uphold dominant ideologies and political agendas, while marginalized communities are denied access to their histories and stripped of agency over their cultural inheritance.

We advocate for approaches to heritage that prioritize equity, accountability, and safeguarding. This includes recognizing heritage as a space not only for memory and celebration, but also for resistance and critical reflection. CIE works alongside communities to support the recovery of displaced narratives, the affirmation of cultural agency, and the use of heritage as a means to confront historical and ongoing forms of exclusion

 

Digital Heritage and Heritage Interpretation 

Heritage interpretation enhances experiences by providing context, evoking emotions, and presenting information in meaningful ways. Interpretation can take up physical spaces—museums, monuments, historic site. Through digital storytelling, AI  and other creative techniques, we engage with cultural heritage beyond the physical—whether by listening, observing, sensing, or co-creating immersive narratives.

At the same time we understand the need to be critical and examine the political economy of digital heritage, taking into account how AI, algorithms, and data governance shape whose stories are preserved and whose are erased. We support open access, ethical digitisation, and digital commons that prioritise community ownership while embracing the creative potential of digital storytelling to amplify marginalised voices.

 

Community Futures: Truth, Memory and the Past

Heritage is not an abstract, institutionalised concept but a lived, collective practice shaped by those who experience it. CIE centres communities as a means of fostering grassroots participation and empowering marginalised voices beyond top-down heritage policies. We support  communities to develop autonomous heritage initiatives that reflect their lived realities, histories, and struggles. Through collaborative research, public interventions, and scholarship, we offer paths to reimagine exclusionary heritage frameworks and create spaces where collective memory becomes a tool for political and social transformation—and a starting point for constructive dialogue.  The past plays a crucial role in shaping collective identities and influencing conflicts. How individuals and communities perceive, and experience historical events often determines the nature of disputes and the possibilities for reconciliation. By understanding the history of past violence, its representation, and its ongoing impact on people’s lives, we can better map a sustainable future.

 

Heritage & Climate: Landscapes and Seascapes

Heritage and the environment are often co-constructed and, at times, co-destroyed, intentionally and unintentionally. Environmental heritage is shared across seascapes and landscapes and through trade and migration, willing and unwilling. The impacts of war, agricultural colonialism, and climate change on both tangible and intangible cultural heritage highlighs vulnerabilities of heritage in the face of environmental crises. By drawing on traditional knowledge, localized practices, and cultural narratives, environmental heritage can contribute to climate resilience and community sustainability. Landscapes and seascapes are not about passive observation but rather arenas of dialogue, learning, and political relevance.