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Puyo, Pastaza – On behalf of the Provincial Government of Pastaza and the Consortium of Provincial Autonomous Governments of Ecuador (CONGOPE), the Intercultural Meeting of Provincial Governments on Heritage Languages in the Territory of Ecuador took place on May 30, 2025. As part of the event, the UNESCO Office in Ecuador contributed with a keynote lecture by Julio César Guanche, Programme Specialist in Social and Human Sciences.

During his address, Guanche emphasized that “the loss of a language does not only mean the extinction of a means of communication, but also the disappearance of ancestral knowledge, social practices, traditional health systems, and unique ways of understanding the world.”

He highlighted UNESCO’s leadership in global efforts to safeguard this living heritage, and Ecuador’s commitment to developing safeguarding plans for endangered languages such as Zápara.

The lecture also addressed the international normative framework, focusing on the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Los Pinos Declaration (2020), which guides the actions of States and communities within the framework of the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–2032). “Indigenous languages are essential vehicles for cultural transmission, and their preservation is key to sustainable development, social cohesion, and community resilience,” Guanche stated.

The presentation also underscored that in Ecuador, cultural heritage—both tangible and intangible—is recognized as a human right. The 2008 Constitution guarantees the right to cultural identity and social memory. In this context, Guanche remarked that “declaring cultural heritage is not an end in itself, but a means to ensure the collective right to culture, memory, and identity.”

The conference concluded with a call to strengthen the participation of Indigenous peoples in decision-making processes, expand access to linguistic technologies, and implement intercultural public policies that recognize Indigenous languages as pillars of humanity’s cultural diversity.