Teaching about heritage crime (2025)

By linking the fight against heritage crime with education, this publication translates the principles of the Nicosia Convention into practical learning approaches, equipping learners to understand, value and actively protect cultural heritage through innovative and participatory activities.

The Council of Europe Convention on Offences relating to Cultural Property (Nicosia Convention) aims to prevent and combat the illicit trafficking and intentional destruction or damage of cultural property by establishing several criminal offences (theft; unlawful excavation, importation and exportation; falsification of documents; illegal acquisition and placing on the market). Open for signature to any country in the world, it also works to foster international co-operation to fight these crimes, which are destroying the world’s cultural heritage.

Teaching about heritage crime is an educational response to the Nicosia Convention, considering the various processes (knowing, understanding, respecting, valuing, caring, enjoying and transmitting) that organise heritage learning. It includes a set of specific educational activities for each of these aspects, including role-playing games, board games and card games; competitions for students and teachers; participatory activities for producing audiovisual materials to be shared through social media as well as the development of applications for mobile devices or web formats, enabling awareness raising through heritage processes and learning.