What does UNESCO, the UN’s educational, scientific and cultural organization, have to do with circus? A lot, lately. UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage initiative is an important tool for the international circus community’s ongoing effort to have circus recognized as a stand-alone, legitimate art form under socio-economical terms. When national and regional circus communities around the world struggle with lack of funding, it is mostly due to the fact that circus is not even listed under their region’s performing arts funding options. UNESCO’s re-examination of the term “cultural heritage” may benefit circus and bring a change that we are all hoping for.

Zsuzsanna Mata, Executive Director of the Fédération Mondiale du Cirque Since the early 2000’s, UNESCO has been changing its approach to the content of cultural heritage. Cultural heritage doesn’t only mean monuments and collections of objects anymore, but it also includes traditions or lived expressions inh...