What ICOMOS does

ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) is a France-headquartered, non-governmental organization founded in 1965 in Warsaw, Poland. It is the only worldwide NGO dedicated to applying scientific techniques, theories, and methodology to the conservation of both tangible and intangible cultural heritage places. Its core activities center on its statutory role as an Advisory Body to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, formalized under the 1972 World Heritage Convention: ICOMOS evaluates all cultural and mixed nominations for World Heritage inscription (Preliminary Assessment plus Phase II desk review and site visit) and conducts Reactive Monitoring missions, state-of-conservation reporting, and technical reviews for the 196 States Parties to the Convention.

Its product and service portfolio includes World Heritage Evaluation and Monitoring Services, Upstream Process advisory services, post-inscription Advisory Missions, the open-access PUBLICOMOS digital archive, a physical Documentation Centre in Charenton-le-Pont holding over 40,000 titles and 40,000+ graphic documents, and a library of over 30 charters and doctrinal texts led by the foundational Venice Charter (1964). Recent product launches include the 2024 Intangible Cultural Heritage Charter and the 2026 'Managing World Heritage' manual co-produced with UNESCO, ICCROM, and IUCN.

Its business model is that of a non-profit membership organization: revenue is generated through individual, institutional, affiliate, and honorary membership fees collected via 117 National Committees, supplemented by donations (including the Raymond Lemaire Fund for emerging professionals), project-based grants from government partners (e.g., Norway's Ministry of Climate and Environment), and publication sales through the Documentation Centre. The organization has no external investors, parent company, or subsidiaries, and is governed by a triennially elected Board currently led by President Teresa Patrício (2023-2026 term). Distribution is community-led through 117 National Committees, 31 International Scientific Committees, and 5 Regional Groups reaching 130+ countries.

Name

ICOMOS

Legal name

International Council on Monuments and Sites

Website

https://www.icomos.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

ICOMOS is the France-headquartered international NGO founded in 1965 that serves as the UNESCO Advisory Body evaluating and monitoring World Heritage cultural sites, delivering advisory services, doctrinal charters, and capacity-building to 196 States Parties and over 12,000 heritage professionals across 130+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Conservation Services

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Museums (712110), Historical Sites (712120)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Preservation & Conservation Planning (BPAHAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Culture, Education & Heritage Intergovernmental Organizations (BPADAAAL)

Keywords

• Cultural heritage conservation
• World heritage evaluation
• Heritage advisory services
• Monument conservation standards
• Heritage monitoring missions

Headquarters

HQ city

Charenton-le-pont

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: ICOMOS generates revenue through membership fees from individual members, institutional members, affiliate members, and honorary members. Members pay fees to their respective National Committees or Transnational Committees.
2. Donations and contributions: ICOMOS depends on the support of members and generous donations from supporters. Donors can support ICOMOS work broadly, specific international programmes, the Victoria Falls/Mosi-oa-Tunya Fund, specific National or Scientific Committee initiatives, or the Raymond Lemaire Fund for Next Generation Skills (for emerging professional scholarships).
3. Documentation and publication sales: Many international ICOMOS publications and Committee publications are available for purchase at the Documentation Centre. Pre-payment is required via PayPal, debit/credit card, or bank transfer, with postage charges.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ICOMOS is an international NGO that provides cultural heritage conservation services worldwide, operating as an Advisory Body to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. Its core offerings include World Heritage nomination evaluations and Reactive Monitoring missions for inscribed properties, development and maintenance of the international doctrinal framework (charters and guidelines) for heritage conservation, advisory missions and upstream process support to States Parties, capacity-building training and workshops for heritage practitioners, and operation of the PUBLICOMOS open access archive and Documentation Centre.

Product overview

ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites) is an international non-governmental organization that serves as the worldwide NGO dedicated to the conservation and protection of cultural heritage sites. Rather than offering a single unified software product, ICOMOS provides a portfolio of advisory, evaluative, and knowledge-sharing services centered around World Heritage protection. Its core offerings include World Heritage evaluation and monitoring services for the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, the PUBLICOMOS digital archive platform, the physical Documentation Centre, and a comprehensive library of Charters and Doctrinal Texts. ICOMOS also delivers advisory services through Upstream Process guidance and Advisory Missions, publishes practical resource manuals and toolkits, issues Heritage Alerts for at-risk sites, and manages the International Day for Monuments and Sites awareness program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• World Heritage Evaluation Services ICOMOS evaluates all cultural and mixed properties nominated by States Parties for inscription on the World Heritage List, conducting Preliminary Assessments and Phase II evaluation processes including site visits and expert reviews, and producing recommendations to the World Heritage Committee.
• World Heritage Monitoring Services ICOMOS monitors the state of conservation of inscribed World Heritage properties through Reactive Monitoring missions, State of Conservation reports, and technical reviews of projects potentially affecting Outstanding Universal Value, providing findings to the World Heritage Committee.
• Advisory Missions Post-inscription advisory assistance provided to States Parties upon request, including site visits and expert consultations on specific heritage management issues for inscribed properties.
• Upstream Process Advisory Services Technical advice provided to States Parties at the earliest stages of the nomination process, including guidance on Tentative List development and site feasibility assessments.
• PUBLICOMOS ICOMOS's open access archive platform that provides access to documentary resources, publications, and heritage conservation documentation for members and the public; users can create accounts to save selections, receive alerts, and contribute peer-reviewed publications.
• ICOMOS Documentation Centre Major heritage resource housed at ICOMOS Headquarters in Greater Paris containing over 40,000 titles, 600 periodicals, 40,000 graphic documents in 50+ languages, and the original World Heritage nomination and evaluation files since 1978; many publications are available for purchase.
• Charters and Doctrinal Texts ICOMOS's collection of international conservation principles and guidelines, including the foundational Venice Charter (1964) and specialized charters covering archaeological heritage, architectural heritage, cultural tourism, intangible heritage, industrial heritage, historic towns, underwater heritage, and more; many are translated into multiple languages and available as open-source reference documents.
• World Heritage Resources and Toolkits Practical guidance documents including the 2026 'Managing World Heritage' Resource Manual, the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context, guidance on Wind Energy Projects, and Desired State of Conservation documentation for heritage practitioners and States Parties.
• Heritage Alerts Public statements and alerts issued by ICOMOS to raise awareness about heritage sites at risk, following emergencies, or facing threats from development projects, drawing on ICOMOS's heritage expertise for advocacy impact.
• International Day for Monuments and Sites Annual awareness program celebrated on April 18th established by ICOMOS in 1982 (adopted by UNESCO 1983), providing an opportunity for the ICOMOS network and heritage professionals worldwide to advocate for and celebrate cultural heritage through events, visits, exhibitions, talks, and publications under an annual theme.
• 22nd ICOMOS General Assembly and Scientific Symposium Triennial General Assembly and Scientific Symposium of ICOMOS, the largest gathering of heritage professionals worldwide; the 22nd edition takes place in Kuching, Malaysia in October 2026 with site visits, workshops, master classes, exhibitions, lectures, expert meetings, and social gatherings under a scientific theme.

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.

• Korean Ministry of Foreign AffairsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2026South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs co-hosted the 2026 World Heritage Interpretation International Conference with ICOMOS-ICIP at Konkuk University on July 17, 2026. The conference brought together international heritage interpretation experts under UNESCO auspices and preceded the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee in Busan.
• ICOMOS Korean CommitteemajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2026Co-organized the 2026 World Heritage Interpretation International Conference together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UNESCO Korean Committee, WHIPIC, and Konkuk University's World Heritage Research Institute.
• UNESCO Korean CommitteemajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2026Co-organized the 2026 World Heritage Interpretation International Conference with ICOMOS Korean Committee and other partners.
• WHIPIC (World Heritage Institute of Korea)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 August 2025ICOMOS and WHIPIC signed a Memorandum of Understanding in August 2025 to formalize cooperation on World Heritage-related activities. WHIPIC served as a cooperative institution for the 2026 World Heritage Interpretation International Conference co-hosted by South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ICOMOS-ICIP.
• UNESCOcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1972ICOMOS is named within the World Heritage Convention (1972) as an official Advisory Body to the World Heritage Committee. ICOMOS evaluates cultural and mixed World Heritage nominations and monitors inscribed properties. This is ICOMOS's most important institutional partnership, central to its mandate and activities.
• ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1972ICCROM is one of the three Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Committee (along with ICOMOS and IUCN). It is responsible for monitoring the state of conservation of cultural World Heritage properties alongside ICOMOS and for carrying out training activities. The two organizations collaborate on Reactive Monitoring missions, joint publications (e.g., Managing World Heritage manual, Post-Disaster Recovery Guidance), and capacity-building.
• IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1972IUCN is one of the three Advisory Bodies to the World Heritage Committee. It is responsible for evaluating and monitoring natural and mixed World Heritage properties. ICOMOS and IUCN are jointly responsible for evaluation and monitoring of mixed (cultural and natural) World Heritage properties. They also collaborate on the 'Connecting Practice' initiative (since 2013) to bridge cultural and natural heritage approaches.
• Blue ShieldcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerICOMOS is a founding member of Blue Shield, the international committee constituted to provide for the protection of cultural heritage during armed conflict and natural disasters. During major natural disasters and conflicts, ICOMOS experts are mobilised to develop emergency measures for preserving, conserving and restoring damaged or at-risk heritage.
• Konkuk University (World Heritage Research Institute)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerServed as a cooperative institution and venue for the 2026 World Heritage Interpretation International Conference. Konkuk University's World Heritage Research Institute contributed to organizing the event alongside ICOMOS and Korean institutional partners.
• UNESCO World Heritage CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerICOMOS works in close collaboration with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre on implementing the World Heritage Convention. This includes preparing state of conservation reports, carrying out Reactive Monitoring missions, coordinating evaluation processes, and developing guidance documents and resource manuals together.
• UNESCO World Heritage CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA joint team from UNESCO's World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS conducted a four-day Reactive Monitoring Mission in Ahmedabad in March 2026 to assess the Walled City's Outstanding Universal Value. This mission was requested by the World Heritage Committee.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Europa Nostra: Europa Nostra is a European heritage NGO advocating for cultural heritage, sharing membership-network and advocacy models with ICOMOS. Comparable as a peer voice on policy, advocacy, and the European Heritage Awards.
• World Monuments Fund: World Monuments Fund is a global NGO focused on cultural heritage preservation with site-level advocacy and the influential Watch program. It is comparable as a peer NGO that identifies, funds, and champions at-risk heritage sites globally.
• IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature): IUCN is the third Advisory Body to the World Heritage Committee, evaluating natural and mixed heritage properties. It is a direct peer through the 'Connecting Practice' initiative and joint cultural-natural heritage evaluation work with ICOMOS.
• ICCROM (International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property): ICCROM is one of the three Advisory Bodies to the UNESCO World Heritage Committee alongside ICOMOS, focused on cultural heritage preservation research and training. It is the closest operational peer, co-publishing manuals with ICOMOS and jointly conducting Reactive Monitoring missions.
• International Council of Museums (ICOM): ICOM is a parallel international NGO focused on museums and museum professionals, with which ICOMOS sometimes co-operates on cultural heritage matters. Comparable as a peer global NGO with National Committees and UNESCO advisory linkages.

Broad incumbents

• Aga Khan Trust for Culture: Aga Khan Trust for Culture focuses on conservation of Islamic and broader cultural heritage, including through its Historic Cities Programme. Comparable as a major NGO funder and practitioner in heritage conservation with global projects.
• Getty Conservation Institute: Getty Conservation Institute is a major US-based heritage conservation research and training organization. Comparable as a broader incumbent producing practical guidance, training, and field work in heritage conservation methodology.
• UNESCO World Heritage Centre: UNESCO's World Heritage Centre is the parent institutional framework where ICOMOS serves as Advisory Body. It is comparable as the governance hub for World Heritage conventions and a broader incumbent coordinating 196 State Parties.

Emerging players

• Blue Shield: Blue Shield is an international committee for heritage protection during armed conflict and disasters, of which ICOMOS is a founding member. Comparable as an adjacent organization focused on heritage in emergencies with overlapping membership networks.
• TICCIH (The International Committee for the Conservation of the Industrial Heritage): TICCIH is an international organization focused on industrial heritage and co-author of joint principles with ICOMOS (Dublin Principles). Comparable as a peer specialized heritage NGO working in a subdomain of ICOMOS's doctrinal remit.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/icomos

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about ICOMOS