23 April 2020
Springer Nature and UNESCO have signed a framework agreement encompassing the publication of open access books focusing on UNESCO’s main pillars, notably education, the natural and social human sciences, culture, and communication and information areas. Written by experts affiliated to UNESCO, these books will be published under two of Springer Nature’s imprints, Palgrave Macmillan and Springer, and will offer research on a range of critical issues pertaining to UNESCO’s areas of expertise. Open access publication will enable readers around the world to access the books free of charge on Springer Nature’s content platform SpringerLink as well as on UNESCO’s open access repository (UNESDOC).
The first book to be published under this agreement, The Future of the Buddha Bamiyan Statues: Heritage Reconstruction in Theory and Practice, will address the destruction of the Buddha statues located in the Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan, and the subsequent mobilisation of the international community to safeguard the remains of this outstanding feature of Afghan cultural heritage. Written by the culture sector specialists at the UNESCO office in Kabul, this open access book will contribute to the available literature on post-conflict conservation ethics and provide a historical record of the possible reconstruction of the Bamiyan Buddha statues for future scholars.