Another year has come and gone, and Global Heritage Fund is ready to take on 2022 with renewed excitement. Like 2020, last year saw a new approach to travel that presented challenges for our work. Despite the uneven return to travel and tourism, cultural heritage preservation and our efforts to transform lives around the world did not stop.
Below are images from 2021 that tell the stories of the rewards of cultural heritage from Colombia, China, Turkey, and Morocco. The photographs selected speak of tradition, cultural practices, and the power of people.
Women in Morocco work together to weave a traditional rug. By supporting women-led economic development and increasing opportunities for women and girls, we are protecting the cultural traditions that sustain their communities and are helping transform them into economic assets.
Dali Dong Village is located in the mountainous southeastern quarter of China’s Guizhou province (Qingdongnan), and is part of a larger regional network of villages and townships shaped by Dong, Miao, and a number of additional ethnic minority group communities. Here is an aerial view of Dali Dong Village.
The ancient city of Sagalassos in Turkey was captured in 332 BC by Alexander the Great and is one of the best preserved ancient Roman cities. Local stonemasons and conservation architects are working to transform the local Aglasun community by investing in this historic metropolis.
Traditional crafts and artisan training are a large part of our project in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco, where we are connecting women and girls with their ancestral heritage. Artisan workshops help revive cultural crafts and foster sustainable stewardship that will protect cultural traditions for generations to come.
A night view of the Dali Drum Tower, the tallest building in Dali Dong Village, anchored on one end of the village’s central plaza. It is the most important building in a Dong village, as it exhibits the Dong people’s excellent architecture.
Tourists pass through a community within the ‘Lost City’ of Ciudad Perdida as a cloud over a mountaintop gives the illusion of smoke from a volcano. Located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of Colombia, Ciudad Perdida ignites curiosity and a sense of adventure in every person that visits.
Men riding in the wagon of a motor vehicle in Morocco. The snapshot catches the exact moment they pass a tree alongside the road, appearing as if the tree is in the wagon with the men. Since 2015, Global Heritage Fund’s project in Morocco has invested in the revitalization of the Collective Granaries and the regeneration of the economies around them. Without the efforts of the local community, including the men pictured above, our preservation work would not be possible.
At Sagalassos, it is possible to say ‘I do’ amongst the historic ruins. Pictured above are a bride and groom tying the knot earlier in the year. The heritage site provides a picturesque venue for the nuptials of any couple.
A young woman wearing a traditional Moroccan dress stands inside one of the Collective Granaries in Tissekmoudine. In 2021, Morocco announced it will launch a project to include the Collective Granaries to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Global Heritage Fund’s granaries conservation project, centered on restoring the material and intangible heritage of Amazigh communities, commenced in 2015 with five pilot igoudar of varying architectural and historic characters.
Happy New Year from Global Heritage Fund!