Heritage advocates urge stronger Philippine conservation action

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Heritage advocates, conservators, museum workers, government representatives and cultural leaders gathered in Quezon City for Heritage Without Borders 2026, a conference calling for stronger conservation practice, policy enforcement and public action to protect Philippine cultural heritage. 

The one-day conference was held on April 20, 2026, followed by a five-day lecture series on painting conservation from April 21 to 25 at the National Library of the Philippines. 

The event was organized by Sanfo 101 in collaboration with Art Conservation Education of The Netherlands and in partnership with the National Library of the Philippines and the Quezon City Tourism Department. 

Organizers said the program created a timely platform for deeper public discussion on heritage protection, conservation practice and the implementation of heritage laws in the Philippines. 

The conference drew participants from across the heritage sector, including conservators, museum curators, heritage advocates, government representatives, academics and cultural workers. 

Organizers said the turnout reflected the growing urgency of preserving collections, monuments, historic sites and cultural memory in a country exposed to environmental and human-made threats. 

The gathering was welcomed by Tany Joe L. Calalay, councilor of Quezon City’s First District, 2nd assistant minority floor leader and chairperson of the Committee on Tourism, Cultural Affairs and Heritage. 

Pearle R. Saprid, founder of Sanfo 101, formally opened the conference. 

For Saprid, the mission is personal.

In remarks prepared for the conference, she recalled seeing the Gomburza Monument at Padre Burgos vandalized years after it had been created by her father, sculptor Solomon Saprid. 

The experience helped shape her belief that heritage protection must go beyond a few nationally recognized works and include overlooked collections, family legacies and community memory. 

That conviction also helped inspire the founding of Sanfo 101, which marked its second anniversary on April 5. 

Sanfo 101 has grown from a training school for art conservation into a broader movement advocating access to conservation knowledge, mentorship and responsibility across communities. 

“Heritage is not only about the celebrated monuments that make it to the national registry,” Saprid said in her prepared remarks. “It is also about the countless works, the overlooked collections, and the families who hold the memory of artists in their hearts.”

The conference featured keynote and guest speakers whose work bridges conservation practice, museum leadership and cultural advocacy. 

The program highlighted keynote speaker Gemma Cruz Araneta and distinguished guest speaker Kate Seymour of Art Conservation Education, chairperson of the ICOM-CC Directory Board. 

ICOM Philippines representatives, including Cecille Gelicame, also joined the program, along with Ar. Ysa Peñas and Atty. Evecar Cruz-Ferrer. 

Sessions covered disaster preparedness in art conservation, cultural and heritage conservation, architectural and historical sites conservation, heritage conservation laws, and museum and conservation practice. 

The open panel discussion allowed participants to raise questions about the significance of heritage and conservation in the Philippines. 

Organizers said the exchange underscored one of the event’s central themes: the need to broaden conservation from a specialized field into a subject of national importance. 

They said heritage protection requires heightened public awareness, stronger collaboration among institutions and more rigorous enforcement of existing laws and policies designed to safeguard cultural assets and historic sites. 

The call aligns with Republic Act No. 10066, or the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009, which provides for the protection and conservation of national cultural heritage and strengthens the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and its affiliated cultural agencies. 

Republic Act No. 11961, enacted in 2023, further strengthened Philippine heritage protection through cultural mapping and an enhanced cultural heritage education program. 

Following the conference, the Heritage Without Borders lecture series ran from April 21 to 24 at the EDSA Auditorium of the National Library of the Philippines. 

The lecture series featured Seymour, an internationally recognized art conservator and educator. 

Each morning, Seymour led focused sessions on painting conservation, including Dry Cleaning Methods, Aqueous Cleaning Approaches, Solvent Cleaning Strategies, and Gel and Emulsion Cleaning. 

An exclusive hands-on workshop was also held in the afternoon, allowing participants to learn and apply the cleaning methods, approaches and strategies discussed during the lectures. 

The series concluded with an in-depth Museum Case Study on Saturday, April 25, at the Quezon City Experience Center. 

Organizers said the lecture series offered science-based and material-sensitive techniques suited to the challenges of the Philippine tropical climate. 

They said the program also fostered the exchange of international best practices for sustainable collections care and preservation. 

Heritage Without Borders 2026 positioned conservation not only as a technical discipline but also as a shared civic duty. 

By bringing together local and international experts, public institutions and grassroots advocates, the event affirmed that Philippine heritage protection requires skilled conservators, stronger public support, sustained education and serious implementation of laws for future generations. 

Sanfo 101 is an art conservation studio and learning center in the Philippines dedicated to training the next generation of conservators through hands-on, material-sensitive methods attuned to the country’s tropical context. 

Founded under Saprid’s leadership, the organization provides training in the restoration of paintings, wood, paper, ceramics, textiles and other materials.