The Hellenic Copyright Organization is once again organizing an event as part of the European Heritage Days 2026. The event, entitled “Copyright and Cultural Heritage at Risk: Access, Protection and Revival in the Digital Age”, will take place on September 18, 2026, in Monemvasia.
The event will feature welcome addresses by the Minister of Culture, Ms. Lina Mendoni, the President of the HCO, Mr. Panagiotis Tsiris, the Rector of the Athens University of Economics and Business, Mr. Vassilios Vasdekis, and the Mayor of Monemvasia, Mr. Iraklis Tricheilis. Among other objectives, the event aims to highlight the relationship between copyright and cultural heritage and to explore the challenges as well as the opportunities arising from the digital age for the protection, management, access to and revival of cultural content.
Particular emphasis will be placed on the international dimension of the topic through the participation of Sylvie Forbin, Deputy Director General, Copyright and Creative Industries Sector, WIPO, who will present WIPO’s activities in the field of copyright and cultural heritage. The “WIPO Toolkit: Access to Copyright-Protected Works in Cultural Heritage Institutions” will also be presented by Sylvie Forbin and Rina Pantalony, Senior Policy Counsel for Libraries and Copyright, UCLA Library, University of California, Los Angeles. The Toolkit provides practical tools to facilitate access to copyright-protected works held by cultural heritage institutions.
Representatives of local government, local organizations, as well as members of the cultural and educational communities, have been invited to attend the event, with the aim of fostering dialogue and connecting the event’s themes with the local community and Monemvasia’s distinctive cultural identity. The choice of Monemvasia as the venue for the event is particularly symbolic, as it is a place of significant historical and cultural heritage, where the need to protect and promote cultural creation meets the contemporary opportunities offered by digital technology.
HCO Educational Activity
As part of the HCO’s presence in Monemvasia, a separate educational activity will take place on Thursday, September 17, 2026, delivered by HCO staff for secondary school teachers and students in the area. The activity will focus on “Basic Principles of Copyright and Lawful Sources of Content.”
View the event programme here.
View the event poster here.
Register for the event here.