Water is part of our everyday life and we are all familiar with using it. But if we think about it a bit longer, we see that it has also had an extensive impact on our spaces, institutions and cultures. This impact of water is ongoing, and it sometimes brings us challenges. From a cultural heritage perspective we argue that to tackle contemporary water related challenges, we can learn from our relation to water in the past.

In the short video below, Steve Brown, an ICOMOS heritage management expert, summarizes the qualities of water and touches upon their diverse meanings. While watching, focus on what aspect of water he highlights.