Main lines of an action plan for the implementation of the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity
The Member States undertake to take appropriate measures to disseminate widely the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity and to promote its effective implementation, cooperating in particular with a view to achieving the following objectives:
1. Deepen the international debate on issues relating to cultural diversity, in particular those relating to its links with development and its influence on policy-making, at both national and international level; in particular deepen reflection on the advisability of drawing up an international legal instrument on cultural diversity.
2. Make progress in defining the principles, rules and practices at national and international levels, as well as the means of raising awareness and the forms of cooperation most conducive to the safeguarding and promotion of cultural diversity.
3. Encourage the exchange of knowledge and best practices in the field of cultural pluralism with a view to facilitating, in diversified societies, the integration and participation of individuals and groups coming from diverse cultural backgrounds.
4. To advance in the understanding and clarification of the content of cultural rights, considered as an integral part of human rights.
5. Safeguard the linguistic heritage of humanity and support expression, creation and dissemination in as many languages as possible.
6. Promote linguistic diversity - while respecting the mother tongue - at all levels of education, wherever possible, and encourage the learning of several languages from the earliest age.
7. Encourage, through education, an awareness of the positive value of cultural diversity and, to this end, improve curriculum development and teacher training.
8. Incorporate traditional pedagogical methods into the educational process, as far as necessary, in order to preserve and optimise culturally appropriate methods of communication and transmission of knowledge.
9. Promote "digital literacy" and increase the mastery of the new information and communication technologies, which should be seen both as teaching disciplines and as pedagogical tools capable of enhancing the effectiveness of educational services.
10. Promote linguistic diversity in cyberspace and encourage free and universal access, through global networks, to all information in the public domain.
11. Combat the so-called "digital divide" - in close cooperation with the relevant United Nations agencies - by promoting access to new technologies for developing countries, helping them to master information technologies, while facilitating the electronic dissemination of endogenous cultural products and access by developing countries to globally available educational, cultural and scientific digital resources.
12. Encourage the production, safeguarding and dissemination of diversified content in the media and global information networks and, to this end, promote the role of public service broadcasting in the production of quality audiovisual productions, in particular by encouraging the establishment of cooperation mechanisms to facilitate their dissemination.
13. Develop policies and strategies for the preservation and enhancement of natural and cultural heritage, in particular oral and intangible heritage, and combat illicit trafficking in cultural goods and services.
14. Respect and protect traditional knowledge systems, especially those of indigenous peoples; recognise the contribution of traditional knowledge, in particular with regard to environmental protection and natural resource management, and encourage synergies between modern science and local knowledge.
15. Support the mobility of creators, artists, researchers, scientists and intellectuals and the development of international joint research programmes and activities, while seeking to preserve and enhance the creative capacity of developing countries and countries in transition.
16. Ensure the protection of copyright and related rights, with a view to fostering the development of contemporary creativity and fair remuneration for creative work, while upholding the public right of access to culture, in accordance with Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
17. Contribute to the creation or strengthening of cultural industries in developing countries and countries in transition and, to this end, cooperate in the development of the necessary infrastructures and skills, support the creation of viable local markets and facilitate access of cultural goods from these countries to the global market and international distribution channels.
18. Encourage cultural policies that promote the principles enshrined in this Declaration, including through practical forms of support and/or appropriate regulatory frameworks, respecting each State's international obligations