Protecting Our Cultural Heritage Special Encouragement (across various NEH programs)

Protecting Our Cultural Heritage Special Encouragement (across various NEH programs) is sponsored by National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The NEH encourages projects that conduct research and develop resources for the study, documentation, and presentation of imperiled cultural heritage materials.

This includes the development of databases, virtual collections, or other digital resources; reconstruction or simulation of works of art, objects, monuments, buildings, sites, or landscapes through 3D models and virtual environments; and the creation of interpretive materials. This encouragement applies across various NEH grant programs, including those that could support cultural heritage video game development.

Protecting our Cultural Heritage | National Endowment for the Humanities Protecting our Cultural Heritage As a result of armed conflict, war, looting, natural disasters, economic development, poor management, and tourism, humanity’s cultural legacy is under increasing duress.

In recognition of this multifaceted problem, NEH encourages projects that conduct research and develop resources for the study, documentation, and presentation of imperiled cultural heritage materials, including, but not limited to, the development of databases, virtual collections, or other digital resources; reconstruction or simulation of works of art, objects, monuments, buildings, sites, or landscapes through 3D models and virtual environments; creation of interpretive materials to contextualize research and/or digital representations; development of tools, methods, technologies, or workflows for virtual representations; training of researchers and cultural heritage specialists to expand expertise on topics such as risk assessment and preservation approaches, and the use of visualization tools; creation of education and training materials and events for teachers to work with threatened cultural heritage materials (for example by integrating digital representations into their pedagogical practices); and development of collaborations (including international ones) for data-sharing, knowledge exchange, and training.

Interested applicants should consult with NEH program officers in the Divisions of Education Programs , Preservation and Access , Public Programs , and Research Programs , and the Office of Digital Humanities to determine which NEH program would be appropriate for their proposed project.

The "Protecting our Cultural Heritage" special encouragement applies to the following NEH grant programs: Collaborative Research Grants Division of Research Programs Digital Humanities Advancement Grants Office of Digital Humanities Institutes for Advanced Topics in the Digital Humanities Office of Digital Humanities Awards for Faculty at HBCUs, HSIs, TCUs Division of Research Programs Division of Research Programs NEH-Mellon Fellowships for Digital Publication Division of Research Programs Preservation and Access Education and Training Division of Preservation and Access Division of Research Programs Humanities Initiatives at HBCUs, HSIs, TCUs Preservation and Access Research and Development Division of Preservation and Access Humanities Collections and Reference Resources Division of Preservation and Access Humanities Initiatives at Community Colleges