Specialized Course on Cultural Heritage, Crime and Security: Protecting our Past to Invest in our Future, 10-14 March 2025, Online - Deadline for application: 24 February 2025

 

Globally, cultural heritage faces an increasing threat of destruction, not only due to the natural process of decay, but also due to political, security and social factors. Wars, political instability and economic recessions pose significant challenges to the protection and conservation of cultural heritage, together with the looting and trafficking by single enterprises or organized criminal groups. Over the years, the number of international crimes related to the looting and trafficking of cultural heritage property has significantly grown. Moreover, their links to international criminal activity, including the use of assets to finance terrorist activities, are becoming more evident year by year. The correlation between the illicit trade of cultural artifacts and terrorism poses an additional multifaceted threat to peace, security, and cultural diversity worldwide. The magnitude and gravity of these new dangers calls for the entire international community to take an urgent and firm stance for the protection of cultural heritage. 

The protection of cultural heritage is one of the targets of Goal 11 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Agenda through which countries have pledged to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.” In particular, Target 11.4 aims to “strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage.”

As the United Nations Research and Training Institute mandated to crime prevention and criminal justice administration, UNICRI supports target 4 of the Goal 11 to detect, investigate and recover assets from the illegal trafficking of cultural heritage. “This issue is not just about the illegal trade of artifacts; it is a direct attack on our shared human heritage and the values that bind us together as a global community,” said UNICRI Acting Director Leif Villadsen during the unveiling of the new report Cultural Heritage Smuggling and the Nexus with Terrorism, in June 2024. The report sheds light on the interconnections between criminal trades of cultural heritage and terrorism financing and provides an understanding of the obstacles of investigating such crimes and the importance of collective efforts. 

The 5th edition of the Specialized Course on Cultural Heritage, Crime and Security – Protecting our Past to Invest in our Future, will be delivered online from 10 to 14 March 2025 by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and The American University of Rome (AUR). The course will provide participants with a fundamental understanding of heritage crime and how heritage organisations, law enforcement bodies and judicial systems are responding.

The course curriculum includes the following topics:

• Legal frameworks for the protection of cultural property
• Conflict and decolonization – the legacy of empires
• Understanding criminal trafficking networks and countering looting
• The link between organized crime and terrorism: cultural property as a tool and funding source
• Armed conflict and the role of the military in protecting cultural heritage
• Protecting museums and heritage sites

The Specialized Course offers professional, legal, social, scientific, and academic perspectives through live webinars, group discussions, dynamic case studies, individual readings, and practical exercises. The faculty is composed of leading scholars and academics from AUR and other universities, as well as international legal experts from the United Nations system, international and non-governmental organizations, and civil society.
Through a dedicated online platform, participants will have the opportunity to interact with internationally recognized experts and peers from all over the world and build lasting professional knowledge. This experience aims to foster intercultural dialogue and to promote a deeper understanding of the most important and emerging issues faced by the international community in relation to cultural heritage, crime, and security.

 

Relevant information

 

Dates	10-14 March 2025
Venue	Online
Application deadline	24 February 2025
Confirmation of acceptance	Within 1 week following receipt of the application
Payment deadline	Within 1 week following confirmation of acceptance

 

1. Entry requirements

The course, organized by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and The American University of Rome (AUR), is designed for university graduates in Law, Political Science, International Relations, Economics, Social Science, Cultural Heritage, Museum Studies, Archaeology, and other relevant disciplines. It is also suitable for professionals working in governmental institutions, local authorities, international and non-governmental organizations, museums, heritage sites and cultural institutions seeking to deepen their understanding of the most salient issues faced by the international community in relation to cultural heritage, crime, and security.
Candidates must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Hold a three-year university degree from an internationally recognized university in one of the mentioned areas.
• Have a strong command of the English language. 

Applications from students expecting to graduate at the end of the 2024/25 academic year will also be considered.

 

2. Course Methodology

This course is delivered online. It combines live webinars in our virtual classroom, led by subject matter experts, with self-paced activities and interactive group discussions.
The live webinars are conducted on a dedicated online platform. Participants need a computer (recommended) or a mobile device with audio and video capabilities, a headset with a microphone to connect to the audio through the computer or mobile device, as well as a reliable internet connection. We recommend accessing audio through the computer. No special software is required. Upon acceptance to the course, participants will be provided with the information to access the platform.
The live webinars are from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm Rome time (8:00 am to 12:00 pm New York time), from Monday to Friday. 

 

3. How to apply

The selection is carried out on a rolling basis.

• Application deadline: please complete and send the application form - and a scanned copy of your valid passport – to unicri.courses@un.org by 24 February 2025.
• Confirmation of acceptance: the results of the selection process will be communicated via e-mail, within 1 week following receipt of the application.
• Payment deadline: full payment must be finalized within 1 week following confirmation of acceptance (i.e., candidates should provide UNICRI with proof of payment via E-mail to unicri.courses@un.org).

Download the application form 2025

 

4. Registration Fee

Registration fee amounts to 800 Euro.
Registration fee includes:

• Tuition
• Course material in electronic version

 

5. Cancellation and Refunds

In the event of cancellation for any reason registration fees are non-refundable.

 

6. Certificate of participation

Upon completion of the entire Specialized Course programme, participants will receive a certificate of participation jointly issued by the United Nations and The American University of Rome. The Organizers retain the discretion to consider severe reasons for absences when issuing the certificate.

 

7. Contacts

Email: unicri.courses@un.org (please indicate “Cultural Heritage” in the subject of the email). Tel: (+39) 06 6789.907