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| Living Heritage Network (Canada) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Living Heritage Network (Canada) |
| Formation | 2002 |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Headquarters | Ottawa, Ontario |
| Region | Canada |
Living Heritage Network (Canada) is a Canadian non-profit heritage organization that coordinates community-based conservation, interpretation, and advocacy for tangible and intangible cultural assets across provinces and territories. The Network fosters partnerships among municipal heritage committees, provincial heritage trusts, national museums, Indigenous cultural institutions, and academic research centres to support site stewardship, skills transfer, and public programming. It serves as a hub connecting local historical societies, conservation professionals, and funding bodies to enhance heritage resilience and community identity.
The Network was founded in the early 2000s through collaboration among the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, the Canadian Museum Association, and regional heritage coalitions in response to pressures on built fabric from urban development and resource extraction. Early convenings included representatives from the National Trust for Canada, the Ontario Heritage Trust, and the Canada Council for the Arts, alongside Indigenous organizations such as the Assembly of First Nations and the Native Women’s Association of Canada. Throughout the 2000s and 2010s the Network engaged with federal programs like the Historic Places Initiative and provincial agencies including Parks Canada and the British Columbia Heritage Branch to pilot community-led conservation models. Influences on its formation included international instruments and organizations such as UNESCO, the ICOMOS charters, and exchanges with the National Trust for Historic Preservation in the United States.
The Network’s mission aligns with principles articulated by the ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on Cultural Landscapes and initiatives championed by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada regarding Indigenous heritage. Its objectives include promoting adaptive reuse exemplified by projects like the rehabilitation of structures listed on the Canadian Register of Historic Places, supporting skills transfer for trades recognized by the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, and advocating for policy reform at bodies such as the Canadian Heritage portfolio. The Network emphasizes collaborative stewardship with partners including the Royal Ontario Museum, the McCord Museum, and university departments at Carleton University and the University of British Columbia.
Programs have included training workshops drawing on curricula from the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario, oral history projects modeled after the Canadian Centre for Folk Culture Studies, and heritage tourism initiatives integrated with municipal tourism offices like those in Québec City and Saint John, New Brunswick. Activities range from technical support for conservation plans consistent with standards of the International Council on Monuments and Sites to community mapping projects inspired by work at the Grosse Île and the Irish Memorial National Historic Site. The Network has run symposiums featuring speakers from the Canadian Urban Institute, the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, and the Canadian Museums Association, and has produced toolkits used by local groups such as the Pembina Trails Heritage Society and the Victoria Civic Heritage Commission.
Governance is administered by a board drawn from diverse institutions including representatives from the National Trust for Canada, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, provincial heritage trusts like the Alberta Historical Resources Foundation, and Indigenous governance bodies such as the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami. Membership comprises municipal heritage committees, local historical societies, professional conservators registered with the Canadian Association of Professional Conservators, and academic centres at institutions like the University of Toronto and McGill University. Advisory roles have been filled by experts affiliated with the Canadian Conservation Institute and the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.
The Network has collaborated with funding and policy partners including Heritage Canada Foundation, provincial ministries such as Ontario Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, and philanthropic foundations like the Soros Foundation and the Graham Foundation. Cross-border exchanges have connected the Network with the National Park Service and the Smithsonian Institution for best-practice sharing. Collaborative projects have involved municipal governments like City of Toronto and City of Vancouver, cultural institutions including the Canadian War Museum and the Canadian Museum of History, and Indigenous cultural centres such as the Inuit Cultural Institute.
Notable initiatives include community-led rehabilitation of historic precincts comparable to conservation undertakings at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, interpretation programs modeled after the Rideau Canal visitor experiences, and intangible heritage documentation in the spirit of UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Network supported a pilot adaptive reuse of industrial heritage similar to projects at the Distillery District, and contributed expertise to heritage disaster response after events akin to the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire. Its training programs have influenced craft preservation efforts paralleling work at the Haliburton School of Art + Design and bolstered tourism strategies used by towns like Stratford, Ontario and Banff.
Funding streams combine project grants from federal bodies such as Canadian Heritage and the Canada Cultural Investment Fund, provincial program contributions from entities like the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation, and private donations channeled through national organizations like the United Way and corporate sponsors similar to those supporting the Canadian Tourism Commission. Sustainability strategies emphasize diversified revenue including fee-for-service conservation consulting comparable to firms listed with the Association for Preservation Technology International, membership dues, and endowment development in partnership with foundations such as the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation.
Category:Heritage organizations based in Canada Category:Non-profit organizations based in Ottawa