Professor Dr. Amareswar Galla, Executive Director, International Institute for the Inclusive Museum, Australia and India; Former Vice President of ICOM and Chairperson, ICOM Cross Cultural Task Force, Paris, France

An alumnus of the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, Prof. Galla is a champion of cultural democracy, cultural rights, gender mainstreaming, inclusive and deep ecology demonstration projects, arts policy development, Intangible Heritage, World Heritage, indigenous peoples, intercultural dialogue and UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and now the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He conducted extensive field work in Australia, Vietnam, Afghanistan, India, The Netherlands and South Africa during the past three decades. He is currently Chief Curator for Amaravathi Heritage Town and International Heritage Adviser to the AP Government, India, on HRIDAY, PRASAD, Smart Cities and other Schemes. He was an Honorary Professor at the Global Change Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane and now Visiting Professor in the School of Planning and Architecture SPAV, India. He is one of the few accredited mentor/trainers of UNESCO for the 2003 Convention on the Safeguarding of Intangible Heritage. Recent capacity building work locations on intangible heritage include Afghanistan, Australia, Barbados, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, Guam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Korea, India, China, The Netherlands and Bangladesh.

Prof. Galla has been the Editor-in-Chief of several prestigious refereed academic journals dealing with Sustainable Heritage Development: International Journal of the Inclusive Museum; International Journal on Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability; (4 pillars), (2005- Oct 2015); and Co-founder and 2nd & 3rd Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Intangible Heritage (2005-2011). Prof. Galla’s extensive publication record include over two hundred reports, publications and refereed articles dealing with indigenous and inclusive engagement in museums and heritage management. He was the Producer and Editor of the flagship project and publication to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the UNESCO 1972 World Heritage Convention. World Heritage: Benefits Beyond Borders, Cambridge University Press & UNESCO Publishing, November 2012. (French & Korean versions in 2013). He has been honoured internationally with several awards for the recognition of his service to locating culture and heritage in sustainable development and poverty alleviation.

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