The Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage

The Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage has been coordinating the implementation of the UNESCO Convention (2003) in the Kingdom of the Netherlands since 2012, in the Dutch Caribbean this primarily concerns the public entities of Bonaire, Saba and St. Eustatius. The Dutch Centre helps practitioners of intangible cultural heritage to safeguard (develop, promote and pass on) their intangible cultural heritage, including through the Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage Netherlands. 
By increasing the visibility of intangible heritage for society and the entire heritage field, the Dutch Centre wants to create awareness of intangible heritage and thus create more respect in society for intangible heritage and its practitioners. 

The Dutch Centre would like to contribute to a participatory, sustainable society in which attention is paid to diversity and international cultural exchange by making intangible heritage visible and support in safeguarding it. In order to inspire and support the communities in safeguarding heritage in a changing society, the Dutch Centre has chosen diversity and sustainability as major spearheads and wants to develop tools and provide a platform for heritage communities. Since 2017, the Dutch Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage is an independent unit of the Dutch Open Air Museum in Arnhem.

The DCICH is a national NGO, often working internationally. In 2022 we published the magazine TEN, on ten years of working on safeguarding intangible heritage in the Netherlands through interviews with communities, policymakers and researchers.

Main activities: 

• Managing  the national inventory in the Netherlands 
• Supporting practitioners of ICH from all domains in safeguarding their ICH through training and workshops.  
• Working on research and development through the Research Agenda
• Advising governments and the Dutch heritage sector  
• Active media policy to raise awareness on the importance and value of ICH