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Advocacy

Towards a Recommendation on Open Cultural Heritage (TAROCH)

Landscape from 1875 with people walking next to a river.
“Watering Place at Marley” by Alfred Sisley, 1875, CC0 1.0, Art Institute of Chicago, remixed with “TAROCH balloon” by Creative Commons/Dee Harris, 2025, CC0 1.0.

The TAROCH Coalition, convened by Creative Commons (CC), brings together more than 60 organizations from 25 countries that have signed the Statement of Commitment affirming their shared vision for equitable and sustainable access to cultural heritage. Together, the Coalition is driving a global movement to inspire UNESCO to establish a global framework that protects and advances open heritage in the public domain.

TAROCH has released the Open Heritage Statement, a global call to action open for signature by governments, organizations, and institutions worldwide. The Statement defines shared values, identifies key challenges, and sets action-oriented priorities for closing the gap in equitable access to heritage. It provides the foundation for international dialogue toward a future UNESCO standard-setting instrument on open heritage.

If you would like to join the Coalition and help propel this important initiative forward, we invite you to apply for membership.

Background

The world’s cultural heritage holds the power to connect people across time and space, fostering mutual understanding, creativity, and sustainable development. Yet, many cultural treasures remain inaccessible, locked behind barriers of outdated policies, resource limitations, and logistical challenges. 

Cultural Heritage Institutions (CHIs) like museums, archives, and galleries face immense struggles to digitize their collections, preserve fragile artifacts, and make them available to the public. These challenges often result in critical pieces of our shared history remaining out of reach for the communities they represent and for global audiences eager to engage with them.

At CC, we help cultural heritage institutions make the digital objects in their collection openly accessible through the use of CC licenses and public domain tools, which prioritize accessibility, shareability, and reusability while respecting ethical, legal, and cultural considerations.

Leading institutions like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Institution, and the Rijksmuseum have adopted open access policies and practices that benefit from the CC licenses to communicate how digital cultural heritage objects can be shared and reused, showcasing the transformative potential of openly sharing cultural heritage resources.

Accessing and enjoying cultural heritage is a human right, as recognized by UNESCO, and is essential for fostering peace, mutual understanding, and sustainable development. It allows individuals and communities to express their identities, safeguard traditions, and actively participate in cultural life, which are fundamental to human dignity and social cohesion. Without openness to cultural heritage, we risk the erosion of cultural diversity, the weakening of dialogue, and the loss of shared narratives that connect us to our past and inspire our future.

The TAROCH Coalition

To address systemic barriers and promote equitable access to cultural heritage, CC formed the TAROCH Coalition. This initiative seeks to collaborate with UNESCO and its Member States to explore the development of a Recommendation—or another standard-setting instrument— that advances open access to out-of-copyright cultural heritage. TAROCH is generously supported by Arcadia, a family charitable foundation.

The Coalition facilitates global dialogue and proposes solutions to reduce unnecessary barriers to accessing cultural heritage. It aims to encourage discussions among UNESCO Member States about adopting policy that promotes open solutions. These solutions may include developing tools, global standards, practices, and systems to make cultural heritage more accessible to all. This vision aligns with UNESCO’s mission to foster the free flow of information and preservation of heritage, contributing to addressing global challenges. 

TAROCH’s goal is that its foundational work, alongside the efforts of supportive stakeholders, will not only address access issues in the digital age but also spark deeper conversations and foster collaborative efforts that ultimately provide a shared framework for policymakers. By cultivating understanding, building consensus, and championing the profound impact of a global policy, TAROCH aims to establish a unified standard for cultural heritage institutions, empowering them to unlock the full potential of their collections for the benefit of society.

Join the TAROCH Coalition

Be part of a global movement that is helping shape the future of open cultural heritage. By joining TAROCH, your organization will:

If your organization or institution supports the Statement of Commitment, submit your application for membership today. Questions? Contact us at info@creativecommons.org.

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