The National Trust of Australia is deeply concerned by the devastating impact of the conflict in Ukraine, the innocent lives lost and displaced, and the irrevocable damage to Ukraine’s rich cultural heritage and architectural landscape.
The National Trust Australia stands with UNESCO and their efforts to implement emergency support across its spheres of competence and calling for the urgent protection of Ukraine’s extraordinary wealth of cultural heritage, with reference to the 1954 Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
“…any damage to cultural property, irrespective of the people it belongs to, is a damage to the cultural heritage of all humanity, because every people contributes to the world’s culture…” – Preamble of the 1954 Hague Convention
The National Trust of Australia are custodians of a diverse range of properties with shared heritage values spanning natural, Indigenous and historical significance. We care for a remarkable collection of over 35,000 objects that help tell Australia’s own unique stories.
Together with our National Trust State bodies, we are proud to work in partnership with the International National Trusts Organisation (INTO) on an international level to share our knowledge and tools for the protection of cultural and natural heritage on a global scale. We work in close collaboration with other heritage bodies, museum organisations and governments to broaden our shared mission to actively conserve and protect our diverse local and global heritage for future generations to enjoy.
We extend our full support to UNESCO in their aims to uphold the 1954 Hague Convention and to all who seek to protect the people, places and cultural heritage of Ukraine.
