The World Day for AudioVisual Heritage

The World Day for Audiovisual Heritage (WDAH), which is celebrated on October 27 every year, is an attempt to raise awareness about the need to take measures and acknowledge the importance of preserving audiovisual materials. In 1980, the 21st General Conference of the Recommendation for the Safeguarding and Preservation of Moving Images adopted the World Day for Audiovisual Heritage.

“Audiovisual materials as documentary heritage objects provide a window to the world as we observe events we cannot attend, we hear voices from the past who can no longer speak, and we craft stories that inform and entertain. Audiovisual content plays an increasingly vital role in our lives as we seek to understand the world and engage with our fellow beings,” the UNESCO states.

History of World Day for Audiovisual Heritage

This day was devised to sensitize people to the need to conserve and safeguard valuable audiovisual resources for future generations. It also highlights the urgency to preserve this heritage while making it accessible to the public.

Significance of World Day for Audiovisual Heritage

The WDAH fulfills UNESCO’s constitutional mandate to promote the “free flow of ideas by word and image” as a representation of India's shared heritage and memory. The day highlights the role of heritage in building the defenses of peace in people’s minds.

This year the theme of World Day for Audiovisual Heritage is ‘Your Window to the World.’ Audiovisual materials as documentary heritage objects provide a window to the world as we observe events we cannot attend, we hear voices from the past who can no longer speak, and we craft stories that inform and entertain. Audiovisual content plays an increasingly vital role in our lives as we seek to understand the world and engage with our fellow beings.