CHILDREN AS CULTURAL AGENTS: REREADING THE ICH CONVENTION THROUGH THE CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD Kültürel Aktörler Olarak Çocuklar: SOKÜM Sözleşmesi’ni Çocuk Hakları Sözleşmesi Işığında Yeniden Okumak
Milli Folklor, cilt.150, ss.32-45, 2026 (AHCI, Scopus, TRDizin)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 150
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.58242/millifolklor.1723743
- Dergi Adı: Milli Folklor
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI), Scopus, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, TR DİZİN (ULAKBİM), MLA International Bibliography, Academic Search Ultimate (EBSCO)
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.32-45
- Anahtar Kelimeler: Convention on the Rights of the Child, cross-sector human rights frameworks, education, Intangible cultural heritage, participation
- Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
- Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
The safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and the protection of children’s rights have been among the concerns of international law and policy over the past decades. While the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) emphasizes the central role of communities, groups, and individuals in safeguarding, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (the CRC) (1989) presents a holistic framework and recognizes children as rights-holders in civil, political, economic, social, and cultural domains. However, despite their shared human-centered ethos, these two Conventions have rarely been examined together. The aim of the article is to introduce a new perspective for the agency of children in safeguarding ICH and contribute to cross-sector engagement and synergy between cultural and human rights frameworks. This paper examines how the Convention on the Rights of the Child’s principles of participation, cultural rights, and education can be read in relation to the ICH Convention’s focus on intergenerational transmission so as to increase the impact and visibility of children in safeguarding. While existing scholarship has analyzed ICH in relation to human rights, sustainable development, and intellectual property, no study has explored its intersection with the CRC. This gap has resulted in children often being acknowledged only as ‘members of communities’ or ‘passive beneficiaries’ instead of as rights-holders whose needs, capacities, and roles deserve greater recognition in safeguarding of ICH. It is important to note that the rationale for this study lies in the growing need to recognize children’s roles in intergenerational transmission at a time when globalization, modernization, and standardization place increasing pressures on ICH. Thus, it is important to address this gap to integrate a children’s rights perspective into ICH safeguarding and increase the impact of both conventions. This way, it is possible to strengthen the CRC’s cultural dimension on the one hand and broaden the ICH Convention’s participatory scope to include the youngest generation on the other. Methodologically, the article adopts an interpretive approach, combining documentary analysis of the two Conventions, general comments, and operational texts with qualitative content analysis of UNESCO-supported projects. The study also briefly deals with how concepts such as tradition, education, participation, and rights are framed and enacted. Consequently, the findings show that both conventions emphasize education as a bridge between personal development and cultural continuity, participation as a central principle, and cultural identity as a right to be respected. At the same time, there are also divergences. Universal standards may not always align with local cultural definitions and implementations of the ICH Convention seldom recognize children as rights-holders. Inscribed elements on UNESCO lists from Europe, Asia, and the Global South illustrate that children are often positioned as learners and beneficiaries, but rarely as important agents of safeguarding. The article concludes that placing the CRC and the ICH Convention in dialogue with one another reframes safeguarding as a responsibility and a human rights endeavor. Recognizing children as active cultural agents affirms the central notion of “transmission” that underpins the ICH Convention and ensures that safeguarding remains relevant, inclusive, and resilient in the face of contemporary challenges.