A European Competence Centre against trafficking and looting: ANCHISE Policy Brief 2

michaelculture
Nov 7
1 min read

Europe stands at a decisive moment for safeguarding its cultural heritage.

While in Europe we possess remarkable assets and excellence in this fight, we observe fragmentation, communities operating in silos, European initiatives with limited timelines. We have excellence but lack systematic effectiveness.

ANCHISE’s policy research calls for the creation of a European Interdisciplinary Competence Centre for Cultural Heritage Protection, a pragmatic and collaborative step toward a permanent European structure.

Building on projects like ANCHISE, AURORA, and ENIGMA, this Centre would connect law enforcement, researchers, and cultural actors through six missions:

observatory,
R&D,
community engagement,
training,
awareness raising,
crisis response.

By aligning with existing initiatives and the European active forces, it aims to turn fragmented excellence into systematic effectiveness.

With the coming EU budget negotiations and the future Horizon calls, the window is open, the moment to act is now.

Read the full policy research to discover how this Competence Centre can shape the future of Europe’s cultural heritage protection ahead of the 2028–2034 EU funding cycle. The Policy Brief is a condensed version for executive reading.

Want to know more or want a private presentation?

Policy Research

Policy Brief