Khaberni - The National Society for the Preservation of Petra launched the 2026 Heritage Award on Sunday, attended by Her Highness Princess Dana Firas, the president of the society and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Cultural Heritage, and the European Union Ambassador to Jordan Pierre Christophe Chatzisavas.
The launch of the award continues the society’s commitment to protecting cultural heritage and supporting innovative projects that contribute to the preservation of tangible and intangible heritage, based on the success of the award's previous editions in 2024 and 2025, which honored outstanding efforts in the field of cultural heritage preservation in Jordan.
This year marks the expansion of the award's scope to include Palestine and Syria, opening broader prospects for supporting impactful initiatives in the region.
The award aims to raise public awareness of the importance of heritage and encourage excellence and professionalism in cultural work.
Her Highness emphasized during a press conference the importance of cultural heritage, which is linked to identity, economy, social integration, and the ability of communities to adapt, highlighting Jordan's efforts to preserve heritage.
She praised the role of the European Union mission in Jordan, which was the first partner of the society in the award project that started in 2024, noting that the first edition of the award in 2024 included one category and received 40 applications, while its second edition in 2025 received about 150 applications in 4 categories, and this year it has expanded to include Palestine and Syria.
Her Highness expressed appreciation for the partners who enabled the society to expand the scope of the award and increase its categories, expressing hope that it will further expand at the regional level next year.
She pointed out that the 2026 award includes four main categories: the Preservation and Adaptation in the Cultural Heritage field; which honors restoration projects and sustainable reuse of heritage sites, and the Research and Innovation category that celebrates research initiatives and innovative solutions in heritage conservation, and the Community Participation and Integration category that highlights projects enhancing the role of local communities and supporting social cohesion, in addition to the Climate Change and Cultural Heritage category that honors projects balancing heritage protection with confronting the impacts of climate change and promoting environmental sustainability.
She explained that the winner in each category receives a cash prize of 10,000 dinars, honoring excellence in heritage conservation, and enhancing the impact of cultural initiatives, as projects submitted for the award are evaluated by a specialized expert committee from Jordan, Palestine, and Syria.
The award adopts a set of basic criteria including the relevance of the projects to the award’s objectives, their proven or expected impact on the preservation of cultural heritage in various forms, the level of innovation in addressing contemporary challenges, and the project's sustainability in the long term, alongside the degree of effective community participation and its ability to enhance inclusive social cohesion.
She added that the judging panel, which receives the shortlist of candidates from the expert committee for each category including 3 competing projects, is composed of members from the society, the European Union mission, and all the award's supporting partners, after which one winner per category is chosen.
Her Highness spoke of the importance of the award, saying: "The Heritage Award represents a solid platform for honoring excellence in preserving our cultural heritage, and embodies our deep belief that heritage is not just a memory of the past, but a powerful force in building identity and enhancing social cohesion and crafting a more sustainable future."
She added that expanding the award's scope to include Palestine and Syria reflects the commitment to supporting initiatives that originate from local communities in the region, calling on all individuals and institutions engaged in heritage to apply for the award and participate with their projects, contributing to the protection of our shared heritage and its preservation for future generations.
On his part, Chatzisavas confirmed that the relationship between the European Union and Jordan is extremely strong, built on governmental relations at the leadership and people levels, and is growing stronger in terms of trade relations, and cultural and educational exchange.
He added: "The European Union is proud to support the Heritage Award as an initiative that embodies our shared values of sustainability, inclusiveness, innovation, and empowering local communities."
He noted that cultural heritage plays a pivotal role in enhancing dialogue, building resilience, and supporting sustainable development, through extending the scope of the award to include Palestine and Syria, affirming the commitment of the European Union mission to protect shared heritage and enhance regional cooperation through culture.
Chatzisavas appreciated the efforts of Her Highness Princess Dana in matters of heritage and dialogue among civilizations, affirming that this year's edition of the award contributes to highlighting Jordan and the role it plays in this regard.
It should be noted that the application window for the award opened on January 18th, and the deadline for submissions is February 28th, while the award ceremony will take place on June 4th, with applications being accepted through the award’s website.
