Creating careers in cultural heritage

Heritage Employment: It’s More Fun in the Philippines!

My curiosity was piqued when I saw the email heading. It was an invitation to a forum addressed to the president of a heritage NGO that I am part of. I immediately asked if I could attend. While I receive news about Philippine cultural heritage almost every day, most of it has to do with a building about or already demolished and how Republic Act. No. 10066 or the National Cultural Heritage Law seems to have given owners of heritage structures more reason to go on a demolition spree. I wanted to hear some good news.

The forum was a chance for me to listen to speakers talk about “The Potentials of Cultural Heritage as a Driver for Economic Opportunities and Employment Generation.” Its formal-sounding title must have stemmed from the fact that it was organized by the Institute for Labor Studies, the research arm of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). It was refreshing to know that a government agency not tasked with heritage preservation was interested in the topic.

A representative of DOLE talked about the need for an evidence-based framework and of economic measures for cultural heritage. Other than tourist arrivals and a survey on what tourists do and how much money they spend, I am not aware of other heritage-related statistics. How does one measure, for example, pride of place felt by a person? A whole community? Can this mindset even have a peso value? I stayed and listened.

A speaker from the Department of Tourism (DOT) talked about joint efforts of the DOT, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, and the National Museum, in developing cultural tourism. Tours promoting culinary heritage, cultural and historic sites, and exchanges with indigenous peoples were developed as a result of their efforts.

Yuchengco Museum curator Jeannie Javelosa spoke of efforts of previous administrations to map the creative industry. She pointed out that its contribution to the country’s Gross National Product is not properly measured. She also alerted us to the existence of two Senate bills on the subject: SB No. 1064 or The Creative Industries Act (and creating a Creative Industries Development Council) and SB No. 2930 calling for the creation of a Design Council of the Philippines. I have yet to read these bills but I am already wondering how creating an additional layer of bureaucracy can help promote Philippine art and culture.

A member of a labor union spoke about capacity-building for cultural workers, social security for the informal sector working on heritage, and the need to create a market for cultural heritage. He also spoke against government bureaucracy as a stumbling block to job creation. The DOT tour guide accreditation, for example, costs 10,000 pesos and may not be affordable or even ideal for community-based guides involved in eco- and cultural tourism.

Construction jobs in heritage preservation projects and tourism jobs from an increase in demand for cultural tourism are being considered as possible drivers for employment in the heritage sector.  Right now, everything feels tentative and new. I hope that DOLE would consider a pilot project involving its own buildings, as it has one inside historical Intramuros. I also hope that it does more research on what data should be gathered to capture the contribution of culture and the arts on the economy. I am so ready to hear more good news about cultural heritage.

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